White House defends Trump's ability to vote by mail

By Bo Erickson ‌and Daphne ​Psaledakis

WASHINGTON, ​Aug 18 (Reuters) - The White House on Tuesday defended U.S. President Donald Trump's ability to ‌vote by mail, after reports the president cast ⁠his ballot by mail in Florida's Republican primary despite ‌previously blasting mail-in ballots as "cheating".

• “As ‌President Trump has said, the SAVE America Act has commonsense exceptions for Americans to use mail-in ​ballots for illness, disability, military, or travel – but universal mail-in voting should not be allowed ⁠because it’s highly susceptible to fraud," White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales said ​when asked about reports Trump voted by mail in the primary.

• "As everyone knows, the ​President is a resident of ‌Palm Beach and participates in Florida elections, but he obviously primarily lives at ⁠the White House in Washington, D.C.," Wales added.

• Politico reported on Monday that Trump voted by mail in ⁠Florida's Republican primary, citing local voting records.

• Palm Beach County's supervisor ​of elections did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

• Trump is pushing Congress to enact new voting ‌restrictions and is trying to restrict mail-in voting, repeating unfounded allegations that it is ‌more susceptible to fraud.

• Trump cast his vote by ⁠mail in a March ‌special election in ​Florida.

(Reporting by Bo Erickson; Writing by Daphne Psaledakis; Editing by Andy Sullivan and Chizu ‌Nomiyama )

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