US intelligence officials say there is no evidence of foreign efforts to meddle with mail-in voting, refuting President Donald Trump’s claims. The report comes amid an ongoing row over the US Postal Service, which is tasked with handling mail-in ballots for the November presidential election.

A vast number of Americans are expected to vote by post due to the pandemic. Mr Trump has for months alleged, without evidence, that large-scale mail voting will lead to voter fraud. On Wednesday, a senior national intelligence official told reporters: “We have no information or intelligence that any nation-state threat actor is engaging in any kind of activity to undermine any part of the mail-in vote or ballots.” It contradicts Mr Trump’s remarks that voting by mail – which he himself has done – is susceptible to foreign interference. 

In the wake of confirmed Russian interference during the 2016 election, US authorities have been seeking to safeguard systems ahead of the 3 November poll. Election security officials earlier this month confirmed that the Kremlin was working against Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, while China would prefer a Mr Biden win. Iran may also attempt to interfere with US institutions. Mr Trump has dismissed the notion that the Russians are seeking to boost his campaign. A cybersecurity official on Wednesday’s call noted that targeting voting machines is “in the playbook” for governments like Russia but that no such effort has successfully affected American’s ability to vote.(BBC)…[+]