US election: Trump’s claims of voter fraud condemned by 1,000 ex-judges, lawyers in open letter
- The letter included signatures by former Democratic and Republican administration officials
- Trump has yet to concede, and the White House has also blocked most resources for President-elect Biden’s team, potentially preventing a smooth transition
A group of 1,000 lawyers, including retired federal and state judges, state attorneys general and law professors criticised the Trump administration over baseless claims of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election.
“Every candidate has a right to ensure that an election is conducted lawfully. However, court challenges, if any, must be based on facts, on evidence,” stated the letter, which asked public officials to stop making false claims of systemic fraud that President Donald Trump has claimed “stole” the election from him.
“The President of the United States has directed the filing of court cases seeking to stop ballots from being counted on the ground that there has been widespread ballot fraud. His sons have sharply criticised Republicans who are not backing their father’s claims.”
Republican lawmakers, including Senators Ted Cruz, Lindsay Graham and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, have made statements backing Trump’s lawsuits and claims of fraud.
Trump has yet to concede to President-elect Joe Biden and has, instead, sought to challenge the results in key states he lost while making broad and unproven claims of massive fraud. The White House has also blocked most resources for Biden’s team, potentially jeopardising chances of a smooth transition to the new administration as the country faces record numbers of coronavirus cases.