Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Friday told Christians that if they vote for him in November “you’ll know in four years you don’t have to vote anymore because we’re going to make it so much better so you don’t have to vote anymore.”
It was unclear what Trump meant by his remarks during a campaign in which his Democratic opponents have denounced him as a threat to democracy and after he sought to overturn his 2020 loss to President Joe Biden and sparked a deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Trump spoke at an event hosted by the conservative group Turning Point Action in West Palm Beach, Florida.
“Christians, just go out and vote this one time. You don’t have to vote anymore. Four more years and things are going to get better and better. You don’t have to vote anymore, my beautiful Christians,” Trump said.
Trump added, “To all Christians, I love you. I’m a Christian. I love you. Get out and vote. In four years, you don’t have to vote anymore. We’re going to make it better so you don’t have to vote.”
Trump campaign spokesman Steven Chang did not directly address Trump’s comments when asked to explain them.
Chang said Trump “talked about uniting the country” and blamed a “divisive political environment” for the assassination attempt two weeks ago. Investigators have yet to reveal the motive behind the 20-year-old gunman’s shooting at Trump.
In a December interview with Fox News, Trump said he would become a dictator if he won the Nov. 5 election, but only on “Day One,” and that he would close the southern border with Mexico and expand oil drilling. Democrats criticized the comments. Trump later said he was joking.
If Trump wins a second term in the White House, he will only be able to serve another four years as president. The US Constitution limits a US president to two terms, whether consecutive or not.
Speaking at the National Rifle Association rally in May, Trump joked about serving more than two terms as president.
He was referring to the term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Democrat who is the only president to serve more than two terms, the two-term limit being added after Roosevelt’s term.
“You know, President Franklin Roosevelt served four terms as president, 16 years, almost 16 years. Would we be considered a three-term president or a two-term president?” Trump asked the NRA audience.
Trump’s comments Friday suggested that both parties need to energize their base voters ahead of a likely close election, and that Trump has had loyal support from evangelicals in the past two elections.
The race has intensified since Biden decided not to seek reelection and Vice President Kamala Harris became the Democratic front-runner.
Recent polls have shown Trump’s large lead over Biden has all but evaporated since the baton was handed over to Harris.
In a statement, Harris campaign spokesman Jason Singer did not directly address Trump’s comments about Christians not needing to vote again, but called Trump’s overall speech “bizarre” and “backwards.”
