Trump claims ‘serious’ fraud, says millions voted illegally
WASHINGTON
Trump’s shock path to the White House saw him fall short of his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in the popular vote - she carried the election by 2.2 million ballots - but win the all-important Electoral College count, which decides the U.S. presidency.
Trump has surpassed the 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House. The Electoral College results are expected to be finalized on Dec. 19. Trump takes office on Jan. 20, 2017.
The Republican billionaire’s latest statements, in which he said he would have won the popular vote were it not for the “millions of people who voted illegally,” came as steps are being taken towards recounting votes in the state of Wisconsin, which Trump won.
Trump and his aides have pushed back hard against that recount, with the president-elect letting loose a series of early-morning tweets in which he quoted Clinton about the need to respect the electoral process.
But by the end of the day, Trump was alleging on Twitter that: “In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.”
Although Trump had warned before the election that the result might be “rigged,” he had offered no such complaint after his unexpected Nov. 8 victory - until now.
Back in New York late Nov. 27 after spending the Thanksgiving holiday at his Florida Mar-a-Lago resort with his family, Trump again took to Twitter, alleging that voter fraud had occurred in several states.
“Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California - so why isn’t the media reporting on this? Serious bias - big problem!” Trump posted.
Trump and his aides have offered no evidence concerning the claims, nor did Trump explain why he would oppose the nascent Wisconsin recount if illegal voting was such a serious problem.
No election observers have pointed to any such widespread fraud.
Trump has surpassed the 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House. The Electoral College results are expected to be finalized on Dec. 19. Trump takes office on Jan. 20, 2017.
The Republican billionaire’s latest statements, in which he said he would have won the popular vote were it not for the “millions of people who voted illegally,” came as steps are being taken towards recounting votes in the state of Wisconsin, which Trump won.
Trump and his aides have pushed back hard against that recount, with the president-elect letting loose a series of early-morning tweets in which he quoted Clinton about the need to respect the electoral process.
But by the end of the day, Trump was alleging on Twitter that: “In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.”
Although Trump had warned before the election that the result might be “rigged,” he had offered no such complaint after his unexpected Nov. 8 victory - until now.
Back in New York late Nov. 27 after spending the Thanksgiving holiday at his Florida Mar-a-Lago resort with his family, Trump again took to Twitter, alleging that voter fraud had occurred in several states.
“Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California - so why isn’t the media reporting on this? Serious bias - big problem!” Trump posted.
Trump and his aides have offered no evidence concerning the claims, nor did Trump explain why he would oppose the nascent Wisconsin recount if illegal voting was such a serious problem.
No election observers have pointed to any such widespread fraud.