Trump Announces Lawsuit Against the Des Moines Register for Pollster Ann Selzer’s Last Poll Citing ‘Election Interference’
In a press conference Monday, President-elect Donald Trump said that he intends to pursue legal action against Des Moines Register pollster Ann Selzer, accusing her of manipulating her Iowa poll to influence the outcome of the 2024 presidential election.
Trump, who had previously praised Selzer for her accuracy, explained how her polls had initially shown him with a commanding 20-point lead in Iowa. However, as time progressed, Selzer’s polling numbers gradually narrowed his lead, eventually showing Trump with only a 4-point advantage before he ultimately lost to Vice President Kamala Harris.
JUST IN: Donald Trump announces he is launching a lawsuit against pollster Ann Selzer for allegedly rigging her Iowa poll to influence the 2024 election.
Trump also announced that he would be suing 60 Minutes for editing Kamala Harris' answers.
"In my opinion, it was fraud, and… pic.twitter.com/xq6rqdb3Ro
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) December 16, 2024
This shift in the polling numbers led several news outlets to predict that Trump would lose Iowa.
Trump was adamant in his accusations, calling it “fraud” and “election interference,” citing Selzer’s consistently accuracy in the past.
“In my opinion, it was fraud, and it was election interference,” he said. “You know, she’s got me right always. She’s a very good pollster. She knows what she was doing.”
The former president’s remarks followed his calls for an investigation into Selzer’s final poll from last month, which showed an unexpected shift in numbers, as TTOA previously reported.
The poll’s findings, which suggested that Trump was losing ground in the state, drew widespread backlash among Trump supporters, who viewed it as an attempt to sway the election. As a result of the controversy, Selzer resigned from the Des Moines Register after 40 years with the news outlet.
In response to Trump’s accusations, Selzer spoke to the Iowa Press in an interview, denying any intentional manipulation of the poll in question. She expressed her confusion about the allegations.
“Let’s deal with the allegations because I am mystified about what the motivation anybody thinks I had and would act on in such a public poll.” Selzer continued, “I don’t understand it.”
She further defended her integrity, stating, “And the allegations I take very seriously. They’re saying that this was election interference, which is a crime. So, the idea that I intentionally set up to deliver this response, when I’ve never done that before, I’ve had plenty of opportunities to do it, it’s not my ethic.”
“But to suggest without a single shred of evidence that I was in cahoots with somebody, I was being paid by somebody, it’s all just kind of, it’s hard to pay too much attention to it except that they are accusing me of a crime,” she added.
Despite Selzer’s denials, Trump remained firm in his belief that the polling numbers were skewed to favor Harris and hurt his chances in Iowa.
The timing of the poll’s results, which came just before the crucial state election, only added fuel to his allegations of deliberate interference.
This ongoing dispute between Trump and Selzer has raised questions about the role of pollsters in influencing public perception during election years.
With the end of the 2024 election season, many speculate that Trump’s accusations of election interference could ignite a broader debate over the accuracy and reliability of polling practices.
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