With recounts looming, Trump adds new administration picks
Set to assume the presidency in 55 days, US president-elect was focused instead on the daunting task of building an administration from scratch
US President-elect Donald Trump pressed forward on Friday with two more administration picks, as failed Green Party candidate Jill Stein took new steps to force recounts across key Midwestern battlegrounds that could complicate Trump’s push for national unity.
Stein, who earned little more than 1 per cent of the national vote, formally requested a Wisconsin recount on Friday afternoon, vowing to do the same in the coming days in Michigan and Pennsylvania. Wisconsin officials confirmed on Friday evening they would move forward with the first presidential recount in state history. There is no evidence of election tampering in the states where Trump scored razor-thin victories, but Green Party spokesman George Martin insisted “the American public needs to have it investigated to make sure our votes count”.
“We’re doing this to ensure the integrity of our system,” he said.
Trump’s team ignored questions about the looming recounts. Set to assume the presidency in 55 days, he was focused instead on the daunting task of building an administration from scratch.
Gathered with family at his Mar-a-Lago Palm Beach estate for the holiday weekend, the incoming president made two senior-level staff appointments and scheduled meetings with several more prospective administration officials.