Donald Trump, refusing to concede defeat in the US presidential election, said Saturday that Joe Biden was “rushing to falsely pose as the winner” after television networks declared the Democrat’s victory.
“We all know why Joe Biden is rushing to falsely pose as the winner, and why his media allies are trying so hard to help him: they don’t want the truth to be exposed,” Trump said.
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“The simple fact is this election is far from over.”
Trump underlined that states had not yet certified the results, and his campaign has launched multiple legal challenges.
However, near complete results issued by each state showed an insurmountable lead for Biden, allowing network news channels to call the overall result, as they do every election.
For Trump, the loss comes four years after a stunning upset – when he came from behind in 2016 and outperformed the polls in a historic White House victory against the Democrats’ nominee, Hillary Clinton.
“Joe Biden has not been certified as the winner of any states, let alone any of the highly contested states headed for mandatory recounts, or states where our campaign has valid and legitimate legal challenges that could determine the ultimate victor,” the president said.
He added: “Beginning Monday, our campaign will start prosecuting our case in court to ensure election laws are fully upheld and the rightful winner is seated.”
The president has launched a series of legal battles over ballot counting in battleground states, with his campaign filing suits in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan and Nevada as the states tallied votes sent by mail.
Trump, his campaign and surrogates have spread allegations of fraud in the voting and ballot counting in various states, although solid proof of it has not emerged.
It’s unclear if the president may concede immediately.
In addition, Georgia’s secretary of state signaled Friday the battleground state is headed toward a recount, given the razor-thin margin of votes there.
With strong focus on the coronavirus since the worst pandemic in a century swept across the nation eight months ago, Biden was able to keep the spotlight on the president’s record, largely preventing Trump from making the 2020 campaign a choice election.
Amid national protests and unrest over racial inequity and another nasty Supreme Court nomination battle in the closing days of the race, Biden kept his eye on the pandemic and an economy hit hard by the coronavirus.
