In a national address on Thursday evening, President Donald Trump stressed that Americans merit trustworthy elections and asserted he is deploying federal resources to stop them from being stolen.

One key safeguard of American voting is its non-centralized nature. The country conducts elections across more than 10,000 separate jurisdictions, each governed by distinct state and sometimes local regulations.

This setup renders the process highly intricate while shielding it from large-scale manipulation. When irregularities surface, which is uncommon, built-in safeguards usually detect them promptly.

The decentralized voting framework stems from the Founding Fathers assigning election oversight to the states instead of the federal government. Although Congress can oversee elections and has enacted measures like the Voting Rights Act, the Constitution assigns states primary control over the times, places, and manner of voting.

Unlike many nations, the United States lacks a single national body to run presidential elections. Day-to-day operations fall to local officials, typically clerks or election supervisors, supported by staff and volunteers.

Election security specialists view these variations as an advantage. Orchestrating fraud in a presidential race would demand coordinated misconduct by numerous workers in key counties nationwide, all risking severe penalties while evading bipartisan oversight and maintaining secrecy, an improbable outcome.

Uniform practices and protections operate nationwide to confirm eligibility and limit each person to one ballot.

Stories of multiple voting, ballots cast for deceased individuals, or mail theft circulate widely.

Such cases, when they occur, face detection and legal action.

Offenses like repeat voting, ballot tampering, false residency claims, or proxy voting carry substantial fines and imprisonment. Non-citizens violating these rules risk deportation.

Those tempted to cheat encounter layered defenses and openness measures designed to block misconduct.

Most states require or request identification for in-person voting. Others verify identity through name and address statements, poll book signatures, or affidavits.

Absentee ballots always need a signature, with many states adding steps such as bipartisan signature checks against records, notarization, or witness requirements.

These steps help flag issues, such as ballots sent to old addresses and returned by new residents.

Trump has maintained for six years that he prevailed in the 2020 contest against former President Joe Biden.

A 2021 Associated Press examination of all suspected fraud instances in the six contested battleground states identified fewer than 475 cases, too few to alter the result.

Claims of widespread fraud have been dismissed by judges, state officials, and even elements within the Trump administration, including then-Attorney General William Barr, who stated in 2020 that no evidence existed of fraud sufficient to change the outcome.