President Donald Trump speaks in the East Room of the White House, Nov. 4, 2020. (AP)
US Elections: Trump accuses ‘Democrat-run’ battleground states of cheating for Biden
US President Donald Trump stepped up his attacks on the electoral process Wednesday, again accusing his political rivals of trying to rip away his self-declared reelection victory.
“Last night I was leading, often solidly, in many key States, in almost all instances Democrat run & controlled. Then, one by one, they started to magically disappear as surprise ballot dumps were counted. VERY STRANGE, and the “pollsters” got it completely & historically wrong!” Trump tweeted.
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He also criticized the way votes were being counted in battleground states that appeared to be initially in his favor. “They are finding Biden votes all over the place — in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan. So bad for our Country!”
They are finding Biden votes all over the place — in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan. So bad for our Country!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 4, 2020
Just after midnight Tuesday, Trump said Democrats were trying to steal the presidential election, announcing that he would be going to the Supreme Court in order to put an end to the voting.
“This is a fraud on the American public. This is an embarrassment,” Trump said during a speech at the White House at around 2:30 AM EST.
“We were getting ready to win this election ... Frankly, we did win this election,” he said.
“Our goal now is to ensure the integrity for the good of this nation. We want the law to be used in a proper manner, so we’ll be going to the US Supreme Court. We want all voting to stop.”
Results from key battleground states have not been announced. It is not unusual for counting to take more than one day.
This year, the added option of mail-in ballots due to the coronavirus pandemic has sparked controversy. Some states will allow votes to continue being counted for days, which could delay the official results for a significant amount of time.
Electoral College votes tallied by Al Arabiya English put Biden at 238 and Trump at 213. A candidate needs 270 Electoral College votes to be declared the winner.
Trump’s speech came hours after Democratic nominee and former VP Joe Biden told his supporters to be patient. “We believe we are on track to win this election,” Biden said from his home state of Delaware. “It ain’t over until every vote is counted,” Biden said.
Minutes after Biden spoke from Delaware, Trump said: “We are up BIG, but they are trying to STEAL the Election.”
We are up BIG, but they are trying to STEAL the Election. We will never let them do it. Votes cannot be cast after the Polls are closed!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 4, 2020
Twitter slapped a warning message on Trump’s tweet, saying some of the information in the tweet could be misleading.
Democratic nominee Joe Biden speaks to supporters in Delaware, Nov. 4, 2020. (AP)
Biden then hit back. “It’s not my place or Donald Trump’s place to declare the winner of this election. It’s the voters’ place,” the Democratic nominee tweeted.
It's not my place or Donald Trump's place to declare the winner of this election. It's the voters' place.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) November 4, 2020
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