Trump says GOP has 'no choice' but to embrace ballot harvesting

Former President Donald Trump on Monday asserted that Republicans must embrace ballot harvesting in the states that permit the practice in order to win the next election.

"So for 2024, should Republicans embrace early voting, voting by mail, and embrace the tactics of the Democrats and follow the ballot harvesting laws of their respective states?" Fox News' Sean Hannity asked in an interview that premiered Monday.

"They're gonna have no choice," Trump told him.

Ballot harvesting refers to the practice of a third-party collecting completed absentee ballots and submitting them en masse rather than the individual voters sending them directly.

The practice has come under intense scrutiny, especially from Republicans who have contended that it renders votes vulnerable to election fraud. Its legality varies by state.

Hannity called Trump's position a reversal, which he denied. The former president is officially opposed to ballot harvesting, but contends that the practice has become a necessity in modern elections that he would seek to abolish upon a return to office.

Earlier this March, the former president encouraged the GOP to take advantage of some states' permissive voting practices while remaining within the confines of the law.

"In the states where ballot harvesting is still legal, we have no choice but to beat the Democrats at their own game," he said in a Truth Social video. "Either we start ballot harvesting or you can just wave goodbye to our country... We have to get smart."

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.