Donald Trump set his sights on an unlikely demographic as he pitched himself to voters Tuesday night in Wisconsin: those who have already cast their ballots for his rival Hillary Clinton.
The Republican nominee issued what he dubbed a “public service announcement” and urged early voters “having a bad case of buyer’s remorse” to switch their votes and support him. And in Wisconsin and a handful of other states, they actually can, legally.
“A lot of things have happened over the last few days,” Trump said, after hammering Clinton over her use of a private email server in light of the FBI’s review of newly discovered emails that may be tied to that investigation.
“This is a message for any Democratic voters who have already cast their ballots for Hillary Clinton and are having a bad case of buyers’ remorse — in other words you want to change your vote — Wisconsin is one of several states where you can change your early ballot if you think you’ve made a mistake,” Trump said. “We’ll make America great again.”
The Republican nominee also encouraged voters in Michigan, Pennsylvania and nearby Minnesota who have already voted to “change your vote to Donald Trump.”
Wisconsin voters who have already cast their ballot can change their vote as many as three times before Election Day, per Wisconsin law. Early voters in neighboring Minnesota can also change their early ballots, and dozens of cheered earlier during the rally when Trump asked how many attendees lived in Minnesota.
While Michigan and Pennsylvania do not allow early voting, residents of those states who cast absentee ballots can change their votes if they vote in person on Election Day.
More than 24 million people have already voted in 38 states, either via early voting or absentee ballot.
Trump’s pitch to the sliver of voters who may be regretting their vote for Clinton came as he warned, without evidence, that Clinton would face a multi-year investigation as president should she be elected as a result of the new information discovered by the FBI. The FBI is still reviewing the new emails found in a separate investigation to determine if they are relevant to the investigation into Clinton’s use of a private email server.
“She is likely to be under investigation for many years, probably concluding in a very large scale criminal trial,” Trump said, offering no evidence to support his claim.
FBI Director James Comey publicly announced last Friday that the FBI was reviewing the newly discovered emails, drawing heavy criticism from Democrats, three former US attorneys general from Democratic and Republican administrations and former Justice Department officials because of the proximity to Election Day.
“It’s a total breach of protocol,” Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook said Tuesday on CNN’s “New Day.” “Now that he’s opened the door, now that he has weighed into this election, we’re saying let’s get all the information out there. Let’s get the information out on Hillary Clinton that he supposedly might have. Let’s get the information our on Donald Trump. The voters are smart and can figure it out.”
