A screenshot shows an authentic Truth Social post by U.S. President Donald Trump ahead of the 2026 midterm elections reading, “Why are we wasting time counting ballots … I am officially declaring victory for EVERY Republican candidate right now.”
In late October, about a week before Election Day, some people on Facebook shared what appeared to be a screenshot of an Oct. 26 Truth Social post by U.S. President Donald Trump in which he preemptively declared victory for every Republican candidate across the country in the midterm elections.
According to the image (archived), the post began:
Why are we wasting time counting ballots? Everybody already knows the Republicans WON the 2026 midterms in a historic landslide! ALL 50 STATES!
I am officially declaring victory for EVERY Republican candidate right now. Every Senate seat, every House seat, every governor’s race. The Democrats can count all they want, but it won’t change the fact that we won.
(Facebook page Branson Area Breaking News)
Other Facebook accounts shared the image as well, particularly in Facebook Groups (archived). A number of Snopes readers emailed us asking if the screenshot was real.
It was fake. The screenshot was fabricated from whole cloth by Branson Area Breaking News, a Facebook page that labels its content as satirical. Because it was later shared widely without a satire label, we’ve rate the claim as originated as satire.
A search for the Truth Social post on Trump’s Truth (archived), an online archive of Trump’s Truth Social posts inclusive of deleted posts, revealed that Trump has never posted about anyone “wasting time counting ballots.” The only post in which Trump used the word “midterms” on Oct. 26, 2026, was one offering a reward for anyone reporting voter fraud in the midterms or past elections, according to the archive.
Searches for “Donald Trump wasting time counting ballots” on Google (archived), DuckDuckGo (archived) and Bing (archived) similarly did not reveal any credible news reports on the rumored post. Had the president actually suggested counting ballots was a waste of time and that he was declaring victory for every Republican prior to Election Day, it would have been reported on by national, international and politics-oriented news organizations.
Trump’s profile picture in the fabricated screenshot differs from the profile picture he actually uses on Truth Social. The profile picture in the screenshot depicts fewer stars on the left side of his face than the real one. Trump’s face in the fabricated profile picture is also rounder than his in the actual profile picture.
That the screenshot was fake shouldn’t be too surprising for readers familiar with Branson Area Breaking News. The Facebook page’s bio (archived) says, “We are a world renowned satirical news organization & have received many awards for our breaking news stories! ***All content on our page is original.***” The page’s label reads “satire/parody.”
Branson Area Breaking News usually features Branson, Missouri, in its satirical posts. All 12 of Snopes’ previous 12 fact-checks regarding Branson, Missouri, were rumors originating from the page, which frequently uses artificial intelligence tools to create the content it posts.
Let us note here: Whether you agree with something being described as satire or parody is a matter of opinion. Snopes is in the business of facts. We label these rumors based on creators’ description of them. Your call on whether you agree.
