Cyber Monday Deal: Up to 60% off InvestingProCLAIM SALE

Democrats have a plan if Trump prematurely declares election victory

Published 11/01/2024, 01:50 PM
Updated 11/02/2024, 02:50 AM
© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump, and the Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris take part in a presidential debate hosted by ABC in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., September

By Jarrett Renshaw and Gram Slattery

(Reuters) - Democrats are readying a rapid-fire response to flood social media and the airwaves with calls for calm and patience with vote-counting should Donald Trump try to prematurely claim election victory, as he did in 2020, Harris campaign and party officials told Reuters.

The Republican candidate told reporters this week that he hoped to be able to declare victory on Election Day, although election experts have cautioned that it could take several days for the final result to be known, especially if there are demands for vote recounts in some key areas. Trump is locked in a razor-thin race with Democratic rival Kamala Harris.

U.S. election winners are typically declared by major media outlets who analyze vote counts provided by election officials. While candidates sometimes declare victory before those calls are made, it is unusual to do so before the winner is at least arguably apparent.

"We are sadly ready if he does and, if we know that he is actually manipulating the press and attempting to manipulate the consensus of the American people ... we are prepared to respond," Harris said in an interview with ABC on Wednesday.

She gave no details of those preparations, but six Democratic Party and Harris campaign officials said the initial fight against any early Trump victory claim would take place in the court of public opinion. They plan to flood social media and television airwaves with demands that all votes be counted before victories are declared.

"As soon as he (Trump) falsely declares victory, we're ready to get up on TV and provide the truth and tap a broad network of people who can use their influence to push back," a top official with the Democratic National Committee said in an interview.

A senior Harris campaign official said in a conference call with reporters on Friday they "fully expect" that Trump will falsely claim victory on Tuesday night, before all the votes are fully counted.

"He did this before it failed. If he does it again, it will fail," the official said.

In 2020, Trump declared himself the winner in the early morning hours after Election Day, three days before the first television networks made a call. He ultimately lost to his Democratic opponent Joe Biden. He has never accepted the result and continues to falsely assert that it was stolen from him through widespread fraud.

Steve Bannon, a key Trump ally, said Trump should quickly declare victory.

"He should stand up and say, 'Hey, I've won this,'" Bannon told a New York Times reporter on Tuesday, shortly after being released from a federal prison, where he served four months for defying congressional subpoenas on the Jan. 6, 2021 attacks on the U.S. Capitol.

The Trump campaign told Reuters that the Republican candidate would fight for all votes until the polls close, but it did not directly answer a question about whether Trump planned to again declare victory before the race was called.

One Trump donor, Bill Bean, who has at times been critical of the former president, told Reuters he hopes either Harris or Trump win by wide margins, so that the results are as widely accepted as possible.

NO REPUBLICAN FIREWALL

In 2020, Trump's victory declaration was met with condemnation from Democrats and many high-profile Republicans. Markets reacted with a shrug, with major stock indices climbing modestly in the days after the election.

But this time could be different.

The former president has consolidated near-total control of the Republican Party in the intervening years, meaning many influential conservatives could be more willing to go along with his claims, several political strategists said.

"We've seen plenty of evidence that he is in complete control of the party ... and we've seen no evidence that party officials or elected officials will push back," said Chip Felkel, a long-time Republican strategist who is critical of Trump.

Trump and his Republican allies have also spent months laying the groundwork for contesting a loss by claiming that non-citizens could try to vote for the Democratic Party and by readying an army of lawyers to go to court to challenge results.

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump, and the Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris take part in a presidential debate hosted by ABC in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., September 10, 2024 in a combination of file photographs. REUTERS/Brian Snyder/File Photo

At his rallies, Trump often says they need to make sure their win is "too big to rig."

(This story has been refiled to fix grammar in paragraph 18)

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.