Donald Trump makes big statement, accuses China of biggest election data breach, says Beijing accessed sensitive data of…

US President Donald Trump on Friday claimed that China carried out the “largest compromise of election data in history” during the 2020 presidential election, alleging that Beijing illegally obtained personal information of 220 million American voters.

In a 25-minute televised address from the White House, Trump announced the immediate declassification of intelligence documents that he said revealed “serious vulnerabilities” in the US election infrastructure.

Trump alleged that the breach involved voter files containing names, home addresses, phone numbers, political party affiliations and other registration-related information. He described the alleged incident as an “unprecedented election security nightmare” and claimed the findings exposed risks of hacking, exploitation and foreign interference.

“Over a period of years, starting during the 2020 election cycle, the People’s Republic of China carried out what is believed to be the largest compromise of election data in history,” Trump said.

What did Trump say about US election security?

Trump claimed that the declassified intelligence showed that the US electoral system was vulnerable to foreign interference and argued that the country’s election system failed to provide enough protection against manipulation.

“The election system we have dangerously exposes… to hacking, exploitation and foreign interference,” Trump said, alleging that important information about these risks had been hidden from the public.

He also cited what he described as an official intelligence assessment that warned US adversaries, including China, Russia, Iran, North Korea and non-state groups, had the capability to target American election infrastructure.

Trump said he had directed the Director of National Intelligence and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to investigate the allegations against China.

Is China’s alleged voter data collection a new claim?

The allegation that China accessed US voter data is not new. A partially declassified 2020 report prepared by the National Intelligence Officer for Cyber in 2022 said Chinese intelligence officials analysed voter registration data from several US states for “public opinion analysis.”

However, claims of widespread election fraud during the 2020 presidential election have not been proven. Lawsuits filed by Trump and his allies after the election failed to establish fraud that could have changed the outcome.