Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s campaign announced that it had fallen victim to a hack over the weekend, CNN reports.
Politico previously reported that it had received emails from an unidentified source containing documents from within Trump’s campaign.
“These documents were obtained illegally from foreign adversaries of the United States, aimed at disrupting the 2024 election and creating chaos in our democratic process,” said Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung in a statement to the media outlet.
Cheung referenced a recent Microsoft report indicating that Iranian operatives had intensified efforts to meddle with and surveil the US presidential election. This included setting up fake news outlets targeting both liberal and conservative voters and attempting to hack an unspecified presidential campaign.
“This follows recent reports of an Iranian plot to assassinate President Trump around the same time as the tragedy in Butler, PA,” Cheung said, referring to the attempted assassination of Trump at a rally last month.
Cheung further stated:
“The Iranians realize that President Trump will put an end to their reign of terror, just as he did during his first four years in office. Any media outlet that reprints these documents or internal communications is effectively serving America’s enemies and fulfilling their agenda.”
However, it remains uncertain whether Iran was indeed behind the hack. The Iranian mission to the UN has dismissed such claims, stating, “The Iranian Government neither possesses nor has any intent or motive to interfere in the United States presidential election.”
When asked if the Trump campaign had contacted law enforcement regarding the incident, a campaign official declined to elaborate on those discussions.
The FBI acknowledged awareness of the media reports but stated it had no further comments at this time. CNN has also reached out to the Justice Department and the Secret Service for their input.
The White House condemned any attempts at foreign interference in American elections, with a spokesperson from the U.S. National Security Council stating, “The Biden-Harris Administration strongly condemns any foreign government or entity that seeks to undermine our electoral process or damage the integrity of our democratic institutions.”
Regarding the specifics of the Trump campaign’s allegations, the National Security Council deferred to the Justice Department, emphasizing that the White House takes any reports of such activities very seriously.
Microsoft has not commented further on the hack beyond its previous report.
According to Politico, the emails contained internal communications from a senior Trump campaign official, as well as a research dossier on Trump’s potential running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, which outlined what the campaign considered Vance’s vulnerabilities. The outlet also received part of a research document concerning Florida Senator Marco Rubio, who was among the candidates for Trump’s GOP ticket.
