President Donald Trump has regularly warned about voter fraud, claiming, without evidence, that his Electoral College margin of victory over Hillary Clinton in 2016 would have been much wider were it not for millions of people who voted illegally. | AP Photo/Andrew Harnik White House Trump lays the groundwork for ducking midterm blame

President Donald Trump on Monday pre-emptively spread around blame for the results of Tuesday's midterms elections, accusing CNN of peddling “fake suppression polls” and floating the prospect of widespread fraudulent voting.

“So funny to see the CNN Fake Suppression Polls and false rhetoric. Watch for real results Tuesday,” the president tweeted. “We are lucky CNN’s ratings are so low. Don’t fall for the Suppression Game. Go out & VOTE. Remember, we now have perhaps the greatest Economy (JOBS) in the history of our Country!”


CNN on Monday released a poll in which Democrats are leading Republicans, 55 percent to 42 percent, in the generic congressional ballot among likely voters. The poll was conducted by SSRS from Nov. 1 to Nov. 3 with a random national sample of 1,518 adults. The respondents were reached by landline or cellphone, and the poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

While it is widely believed that Democrats have a strong chance of taking back the House, a POLITICO/Morning Consult poll released Monday showed a much slimmer margin. Forty-three percent of registered voters would vote for the Democratic congressional candidate, whereas 40 percent said they would vote for the Republican candidate, the poll found. In addition, 18 percent are undecided.

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In another sign of Trump's potential postelection messaging, the president also warned that “illegal voting” may take place.

“Law Enforcement has been strongly notified to watch closely for any ILLEGAL VOTING which may take place in Tuesday’s Election (or Early Voting),” Trump tweeted. “Anyone caught will be subject to the Maximum Criminal Penalties allowed by law. Thank you!”

Trump has regularly warned about voter fraud, claiming without evidence that his Electoral College margin of victory over Hillary Clinton in 2016 would have been much wider were it not for millions of people who voted illegally.