Trump, formerly a critic of mail-in voting, urges supporters to vote by mail

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump encouraged supporters on Saturday and again on Monday to vote by mail if they wanted, a change of tone for the US president, who has for years described mail-in voting as a practice rife with fraud.

Speaking to reporters at the White House before departing for a rally in Nebraska on Monday afternoon, Trump said his supporters could vote by mail in the coming congressional midterm elections on November 3, even as he said he preferred in-person voting.

"They can vote by mail if they want, because we seem to have no choice because a lot of people want to vote by mail, but a lot of very good people also want to vote in-person," Trump said. "You can do either."

The comments came after he posted a campaign video over the weekend encouraging Republicans to vote.

"Vote early, vote by mail or vote in-person on Election Day, November 3rd," Trump said.

It was not immediately clear why Trump changed his tone. The president has repeatedly made false claims that his 2020 election defeat was the result of voter fraud, including with mail-in ballots. The Trump administration tried to significantly tighten the rules governing mail-in voting heading into the midterm elections, though the Supreme Court in September declined to allow the Postal Service to enforce the new rules.

Some Republicans have in the past expressed concern that discouraging mail-in voting could reduce turnout among conservative rural voters, a core part of Trump's base, some of whom live relatively far from polling stations.

Republicans are entering the final weeks of the campaign in a difficult national political environment. A Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Monday found Trump's approval rating at 32%, holding at September's record low, while registered voters preferred Democrats over Republicans 44% to 37% when asked which party they would support in the midterms. Among independents, Democrats led 37% to 21%, with 28% undecided.

- Gram Slattery; Editing by Caitlin Webber and Kate Mayberry/Reuters