WASHINGTON, D.C. (CBS12) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that he voted by mail in Florida elections because his duties as president required him to remain in Washington, despite acknowledging recent weekend trips to Palm Beach.

“Because I’m President of the United States and because of the fact that I’m President of the United States, I did a mail-in ballot for elections that took place in Florida because I felt I should be here,” Trump told reporters. When pressed about his time in Palm Beach in recent weeks, Trump responded that his schedule still influenced the decision, saying he voted by mail because:

I decided that I was going to vote by mail-in ballot because I couldn’t be there because I had a lot of different things.”

Election records in Florida show Trump’s mail-in ballot was logged in the special election for House District 87 in Palm Beach County earlier this month. According to the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections, the president cast his vote by mail in the race, which was held in early March.

Trump’s comments and voting method have drawn attention as he continues to push for changes to federal voting laws. Earlier this month, the president said he would not sign additional legislation unless Congress advances a strict proof-of-citizenship voting bill, known as the SAVE America Act, which also seeks to end mail-in voting nationwide. The House has approved the legislation, and it is now under consideration in the Senate.

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The president has previously criticized mail-in voting, at times suggesting it could lead to fraud, even as his own ballot was submitted through the mail system during the Palm Beach County special election. Trump did not directly address that contrast during Thursday’s exchange with reporters.

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The remarks were made during a brief question-and-answer session in Washington. No additional details were provided by the White House about the president’s vote or his travel schedule at the time of the election.