Washington DC, United States

Just hours into Election Day, Republican candidate Donald Trump sent several X posts asking people to 'stay in line,' as the former United States president and his supporters appear to fear that people might leave if polling slows or gets delayed.

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"STAY IN LINE - TOO BIG TO RIG!," he posted on X on Tuesday (Nov 5), hinting that polling might stop at designated times without allowing everyone to vote. 

Watch: US Elections: Voters Head to the Polls to Vote For Harris or Trump

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The post was accompanied by an image saying 'Protect the Vote', which linked to a website: protectthevote.com.

Interestingly, at the time of writing this, the website was not opening, and returning an error message.

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Trump's alarmist messaging is reminiscent of the 'stop the steal' movement that happened soon after it emerged on 2020 Election Night that he was losing. That protest snowballed into the Capitol Hill riot of 2021 on January 6.

Trump's surrogates and supporters are filling social media with memes with hashtags like 'stay in line' and 'too big to rig,' making it clear that they want only one outcome this election night.

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The Trump X handle repeatedly posted messages asking people not to leave polling stations till they vote.

"Republicans: We are doing GREAT! Stay on Line. Do not let them move you. STAY ON LINE AND VOTE!," said one.

"If you're there before the official close of the polls, don't let anyone intimidate you or force you out of line," said another.

Also read: US election: Allies tell Trump to declare victory prematurely if he secures lead in swing states, says report

'StayInLine' is now a hashtag, with several people posting images, videos and memes.

One such post said: "These are the front lines of a war to save our country. Serve with honour. #StayInLine".

"President Trump took a bullet for you. If machines go down while you are in line, you stay in line all day until you vote for this man," said another supporter of the Republican presidential candidate.

This makes one wonder: Is Trump already laying the groundwork to reject the election results in case he loses to Kamala Harris by a thin margin?

Also read: Puerto Rico is not voting in US presidential elections but has Trump and Harris on ballot. Here's why

That's quite a possibility, given that opinion polls had predicted that his contest with his Democratic rival is supertight.

Earlier, after casting his vote, Trump has assured that there will not be any violence, expressing confidence that he is winning the election.