US election 2020: Trump again refuses to promise a peaceful transfer of power if he loses
- US president has baselessly claimed widespread mail voting will lead to massive fraud
- If he loses, Trump might seek to challenge the election results in the US Supreme Court
US President Donald Trump declined on Wednesday to commit to a peaceful transfer of power if he loses the November 3 election to Democratic rival Joe Biden and said he expected the election battle to end up before the Supreme Court.
“We’re going to have to see what happens,” Trump, a Republican, told reporters at the White House when asked whether he would commit to transferring power.
The president, who trails Biden in national opinion polls, has repeatedly cast doubt on the legitimacy of the election, asserting without evidence that mail-in voting would lead to fraud and a “rigged” outcome.
“The ballots are a disaster,” Trump said.
Democrats have encouraged voting by mail as a way to cast ballots safely during the coronavirus pandemic. Millions of Americans, including much of the military, have cast postal votes for years without problems.
In 2016, Trump also raised questions about whether he would accept the results of the election. He went on to win the presidency.