The head of the US Department of Homeland Security has reportedly reversed a striking earlier claim that large numbers of illegal migrants had been voting in American elections, an assertion that had bolstered President Trump's long-standing arguments about voter fraud. The apparent climbdown is politically awkward, since it undercuts a narrative the White House has used to justify tighter voting rules and immigration enforcement, and it risks provoking a reaction from Trump himself if he views it as contradicting his position.

Officials had previously suggested evidence existed of illegal migrants participating in US elections, a claim that fed into Trump's repeated assertions that voter fraud has affected election outcomes. The Homeland Security chief's retreat from that position, without the DHS providing supporting evidence when pressed, leaves the administration in a difficult spot, caught between maintaining credibility on its claims and avoiding open conflict with the president over the issue.