“Donald Trump claims he has won three presidential elections and received more votes than any previous candidate.” — Donald Trump. Our verdict: False.
Donald Trump made the claim at a rally in Ohio on 28 October 2026, according to a full video and transcript published by the Substack newsletter tommyxtopher.
Our verdict
False
Donald Trump's claim that he has won three presidential elections is false. Official records show he lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden, so he cannot have won three. We could not check the part about receiving more votes than any previous candidate, because the vote totals needed to test it were not available.
What we found
We reached this verdict because the official 2020 presidential election results published by the Federal Election Commission show that Donald Trump did not win in 2020. He won in 2024, as confirmed by the National Archives' official Electoral College results and by the Federal Election Commission's official 2024 results. A single loss in 2020 is enough to rule out three wins, whatever happened in any other year. The second part of the claim, that he received more votes than any previous candidate, could not be checked. The records we found do not include popular vote totals for his elections or for earlier candidates, so we cannot say whether that part is true or false.
The evidence
1 contradict and 2 support the claim, of 5 sources.
- Background
A full video and transcript of the rally shows Donald Trump saying he won three presidential elections and received the most votes ever. [1]
- Contradicts the claim
The Federal Election Commission's official 2020 presidential general election results show Donald Trump did not win that election. [2]
- Supports the claim
The National Archives' official 2024 Electoral College results confirm Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election. [3]
- Supports the claim
The Federal Election Commission's official 2024 presidential general election results confirm Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election. [4]
- Background
A Newsweek transcript from 4 November 2020 shows Donald Trump claiming victory in that election while votes were still being counted. [5]
What we could not confirm
- Whether Donald Trump received more votes than any previous candidate. The records we found do not include popular vote totals for his elections in 2016, 2020 and 2024, or for earlier candidates.
How we checked
We looked at official election records, including the Federal Election Commission's results for 2020 and 2024 and the National Archives' Electoral College results for 2024, along with a transcript of the rally where the claim was made. We reviewed 5 relevant sources.
Sources
- [1]tommyxtopher.substack.com · Trump Ohio Rally 10-28-2026 - Full Video And Transcript · October 28, 2026
- [2]fec.gov · Official 2020 Presidential General Election Results
- [3]archives.gov · 2024 Electoral College Results
- [4]fec.gov · Official 2024 Presidential General Election Results
- [5]newsweek.com · What Donald Trump Said in Election 'Victory' Statement: Full Transcript · November 4, 2020
- [6]Photo: Daniel Torok / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Have evidence we missed?
If you know of a source that confirms or contradicts this claim, send us the link. We review every submission and update fact checks when new evidence changes the picture.
Measured Take updates fact checks when new evidence emerges. Corrections are noted on the page.
All fact checks