Trump Campaign Accuses UK Labour Party of Interfering in U.S. Election
Donald Trump’s presidential campaign has accused the UK’s Labour Party, led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, of “blatant foreign interference” in the U.S. election, after several volunteers from Labour traveled to support Kamala Harris’s campaign. The Trump campaign has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), requesting an investigation into what it claims are illegal contributions from Labour to the Harris campaign.
While Labour Party volunteers have traditionally supported the Democrats in U.S. elections, this recent collaboration has sparked controversy. According to U.S. law, foreign nationals may volunteer for campaigns but are prohibited from making financial contributions. The Trump campaign’s complaint referenced media reports and a now-deleted LinkedIn post from a Labour official, which indicated that nearly 100 Labour staff would be assisting Harris’s campaign in the coming weeks.
The complaint further accused Labour of inspiring what it described as Harris’s “dangerously liberal policies and rhetoric.” Starmer, however, defended the volunteers, stating that they were working in their personal time and that this type of support for U.S. elections has been a long-standing practice.
Despite the controversy, experts suggest that even if Trump wins the presidency in November, the incident is unlikely to significantly affect U.S.-UK relations. Greg Swenson, chairman of Republican Overseas UK, believes Trump may move past the issue, though some “scar tissue” could remain.
This situation mirrors a previous case where Bernie Sanders’s campaign was fined by the FEC after Australia’s Labour Party funded flights and food for its volunteers supporting Sanders. Trump’s camp argues that Labour’s actions represent foreign interference in plain sight and is calling for accountability.