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      Trump election fraud claims are hurting our state, says Georgia official – video

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      Brad Raffensperger, Georgia’s secretary of state, warned that Donald Trump’s repeated claims the election had been stolen were causing damage, after two separate recounts confirmed Joe Biden had won the state. ‘We have now counted legally-cast ballots three times, and the results remain unchanged,’ Raffensperger said. ‘Disinformation regarding election administration should be rejected. Integrity matters. Truth matters.’
      Georgia recertifies election results, confirming Biden’s victory More

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      Georgia recertifies election results, confirming Biden's victory

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      [embedded content]
      Georgia has re-certified the state’s results in the 3 November presidential election after two separate recounts, confirming again that the Democratic president-elect, Joe Biden, had won the state.
      “It’s been a long 34 days since the election on November 3,” Georgia’s secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, said in a press release on Monday. “We have now counted legally cast ballots three times, and the results remain unchanged.”
      Georgia conducted a full hand recount shortly after the election, which showed Biden still leading by about 13,000 votes. Despite that hand recount, Donald Trump’s campaign still requested another recount because of the narrow margin of Biden’s victory.
      That recount has now confirmed Biden’s victory in Georgia, making the president-elect the first Democrat since Bill Clinton to carry the state.
      Shortly after that announcement was made, Trump once again lashed out against Georgia’s Republican governor, Brian Kemp. The president has repeatedly called for a special legislative session in the state to once again challenge the election results, a request that Kemp has reportedly declined.
      Raffensperger said on Sunday that a special session to overturn the state’s election results “would be then nullifying the will of the people”.
      Georgia’s lieutenant governor, Geoff Duncan, a Republican, told CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday that he did not support Trump’s call for a special legislative session.
      “Calling the general assembly back in at this point would almost be along the lines of a solution trying to find a problem,” Duncan said. “And we’re certainly not going to move the goalposts at this point in the election. We are going to continue to follow the letter of the law, which gives us a very clearcut direction as to how to execute an election.”
      The president staged a rally in Valdosta, Georgia, on Saturday night in which he repeatedly falsely claimed he won the state. Two Georgia Republicans face 5 January runoffs which will decide control of the Senate.
      “They cheated and they rigged our presidential election, but we will still win it,” Trump falsely insisted. “And they’re going to try and rig this [Senate] election too.” More

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      Armed pro-Trump protesters gather outside Michigan elections chief's home

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      Michigan’s secretary of state, Jocelyn Benson, said dozens of armed protesters gathered in a threatening manner outside her home on Saturday evening chanting “bogus” claims about electoral fraud.Michigan officials last month certified the state’s election results showing President-elect Joe Biden had won Michigan, one of a handful of key battleground states, in the course of his 3 November election victory.Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed, contrary to evidence, that the outcome was marred by widespread fraud in multiple states. State and federal officials have repeatedly stated that there is no evidence of fraud on any significant scale, and Biden is to be sworn in on 20 January.The individuals gathered outside my home targeted me as Michigan’s Chief Election officer. But their threats were actually aimed at the 5.5million Michigan citizens who voted in this fall’s election, seeking to overturn their will. They will not succeed in doing so. My statement: pic.twitter.com/RSUnPSN4Aa— Jocelyn Benson (@JocelynBenson) December 7, 2020
      The protesters who rallied outside Benson’s home held up placards saying “Stop the Steal” and chanted the same message, according to various clips uploaded on social media.In a Twitter statement on Sunday, Benson said the protesters were trying to spread false information about the security and accuracy of the US election system. “The demands made outside my home were unambiguous, loud and threatening.”The Michigan attorney general, Dana Nessel, in a separate Twitter post, accused the pro-Trump demonstrators of “mob-like behavior [that] is an affront to basic morality and decency”.“Anyone can air legitimate grievances to Secretary Benson’s office through civil and democratic means, but terrorizing children and families in their own homes is not activism.”Benson added: “They targeted me in my role as Michigan’s chief election officer. But the threats of those gathered weren’t actually aimed at me – or any other elected officials in this state. They were aimed at the voters.”Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who has clashed publicly with Trump over state coronavirus restrictions, was the target of a kidnapping plot by a far-right militia group during the election campaign, prosecutors said in October.Michigan, one of a handful of key swing state in the 2020 presidential race, was a target of agitation by Trump and rightwing supporters against stay-at-home orders Whitmer imposed earlier this year to curb coronavirus transmissions. More

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      Georgia runoff debate: senator Kelly Loeffler refuses multiple times to accept Biden victory

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      Donald Trump’s baseless claims of election fraud dominated a tense debate in Georgia ahead of a crucial Senate runoff election as Republican senator Kelly Loeffler refused three times to acknowledge the result of the November ballot, which Trump lost by a convincing electoral college margin and by more than 7m votes.
      The future of the US senate hangs on the outcome of the 5 January election in Georgia with the two seats at stake determining whether Republicans or Democrats will hold an effective majority in the upper chamber. The result will play a major role in president-elect Joe Biden’s ability to legislate and govern during his tenure as the next president of the United States.
      Loeffler faces Democrat Raphael Warnock in the first race, while incumbent Republican David Perdue faces Democrat Jon Ossoff in the second.
      On Sunday Ossoff debated alone next to an empty podium as Perdue declined to partake in the televised debate amid allegations of corruption tied to his stock market trading during the pandemic.

      Ossoff argued that Perdue avoided the debate in Atlanta as he did not want to “incriminate himself” over his financial dealings, which include suspiciously timed investments in companies set to benefit from the pandemic.
      “It shows an astonishing arrogance and sense of entitlement for Georgia’s senior US senator to believe he shouldn’t have to debate at a moment like this in our history,” Ossoff said.
      Both Perdue and Loeffler appeared at a rally held by Donald Trump on Saturday night in south Georgia, ostensibly staged for the president to show his support for both senate candidates, but which saw the outgoing president make repeated baseless claims of election fraud and criticism of Republican state officials who certified a victory for Biden in Georgia.
      Although Loeffler and Perdue have not articulated the same baseless conspiracy theories as Trump, like the majority of their Republican colleagues they have not recognized Biden as the president-elect.
      On Sunday, Loeffler was asked on numerous occasions whether she believed Trump’s fictitious claims of election fraud and declined to answer directly each time.
      She argued that Trump, who has so far lost all meaningful decisions in his numerous legal attempts to subvert the results through the courts, had “every right to every legal recourse” in the election.
      Trump lost the state of Georgia, a long time Republican stronghold, by over 12,000 votes in a result that was certified by the Republican secretary of state over two weeks ago.
      Loeffler attempted to pivot away from the issue by arguing that Trump had also encouraged his supporters on Saturday to vote for her in January.
      “The president was also clear that Georgians need to come out and vote for David Perdue and myself because of what’s at stake,” she said.
      Both Republicans candidates face a rhetorical tightrope. On the one hand they are refusing to acknowledge that Biden has won, but on other framing the Georgia Senate race as crucial to prevent Democratic control of government, itself a tacit acknowledgement that Trump has lost the White House.
      Warnock, pastor of the historic Ebenezer baptist church in Atlanta, criticised Loeffler for her position, and used one of his own questions in the debate to ask: “Yes or no, Senator Loeffler: did Donald Trump lose the presidential election?”
      The senator dodged the answer again.
      Loeffler, who is a multi-millionaire, also faces allegations of shady stock market trading tied to the pandemic, hit back by branding Warnock, a centrist Democrat, as a “radical liberal” and at one point asked the pastor to renounce Marxism in public.
      Warnock did not engage, and concluded the debate by stating: “It’s dark right now. But morning is on the way. It’s our job, Georgia to put our shoes on and get ready because there are those engaged in the politics of division. They have no vision and so they engage in division.”
      Early voting in the Georgia runoff begins on 14 December with polls indicating an extremely tight election in both races. More

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      Trump press secretary appears to acknowledge Biden election victory

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      White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany appeared on Sunday to admit Donald Trump lost the presidential election, a concession the president refuses to make.In an interview on Fox News, McEnany discussed runoff elections in Georgia in January which will decide control of the Senate.“If we lose these two Senate seats,” she said, “guess who’s casting the deciding vote in this country for our government? It will be Kamala Harris.”Trump refuses to concede defeat by Joe Biden, despite losing the electoral college 306-232 and trailing in the popular vote by more than 7m.He is not alone: only 27 of 249 Republicans in Congress have acknowledged Biden’s victory, according to the Washington Post.But the Democrat will be inaugurated in Washington on 20 January and Harris, a senator from California, will become vice-president.Trump has filed lawsuits seeking to overturn results in a number of states, the vast majority of which he has lost.In Georgia, the president continues to demand that Governor Brian Kemp call a special session of the state legislature, to overturn Biden’s victory.Kemp and Republican officials including secretary of state Brad Raffensperger and lieutenant governor Geoff Duncan have refused to do so.On Fox News, McEnany discussed Trump campaign lawsuits in a number of states, including Georgia. But she focused on the Senate runoffs in the southern state.If Democrats defeat sitting Republicans Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue on 5 January, the Senate will be split 50-50. A casting vote from Vice-President Harris will therefore give Democrats a tenuous hold on the chamber to add to control of the House of Representatives and the White House.“What is paramount is Georgia,” McEnany said. “Right here, right now, making sure that we hold this branch of government.” More

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      Trump's attacks on election integrity 'disgust me', says senior Georgia Republican

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      Donald Trump’s attacks on Republican officials in Georgia and insistence his defeat by Joe Biden must be overturned are disgusting, the Republican lieutenant governor of the southern state said on Sunday.
      “It’s not American,” Geoff Duncan told CNN’s State of the Union. “It’s not what democracy is all about. But it’s reality right now.”
      The president staged a rally in Valdosta, Georgia on Saturday night. He began his speech, which lasted more than 90 minutes, by falsely claiming he won the state, which in fact he lost by around 12,000 votes in a result certified by Republican secretary of state Brad Raffensperger more than two weeks ago.
      “They cheated and they rigged our presidential election, but we will still win it,” Trump falsely insisted. “And they’re going to try and rig this [Senate] election too.”
      Two Georgia Republicans face 5 January runoffs which will decide control of the Senate. On Sunday evening, Kelly Loeffler will debate Rev Raphael Warnock, her Democratic challenger. Amid controversy over stock trades made by both Republicans during the Covid-19 pandemic, David Perdue has declined to debate his challenger, Jon Ossoff.
      In Valdosta, the president invited Perdue and Loeffler on to the stage. Neither reiterated his baseless claims about election fraud, Perdue coming closest by saying: “We’re going to fight and win those seats and make sure you get a fair and square deal in Georgia.”
      As Perdue spoke, the crowd chanted: “Fight for Trump!”
      Some suggest Trump’s assault on the presidential election could depress Republican turnout.
      “I think the rally last night was kind of a two-part message,” Duncan told CNN. “The first part was very encouraging to listen to the president champion the conservative strategies of Senators Loeffler and Perdue, and the importance of them being re-elected.
      “The second message was concerning to me. I worry that … fanning the flames around misinformation puts us in a negative position with regards to the 5 January runoff. The mountains of misinformation are not helping the process. They’re only hurting it.”
      CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Duncan: “At a certain point, does this disgust you?”
      “Oh, absolutely it disgusts me,” Duncan said.
      In Valdosta, Trump read from a prepared list of nonsensical evidence he said highlighted his victory. This included arguing that by winning Ohio and Florida he had in fact won the entire election, and also that winning an uncontested Republican primary was proof he beat Biden in November.
      Trump lost the electoral college 306-232 and trails in the popular vote by more than 7m. His campaign has launched legal challenges in various states. The majority have been rejected or dropped. The campaign filed a new lawsuit in Georgia on Friday.
      Trump vented fury at Republican governor Brian Kemp, a one-time ally who he called from the White House on Saturday to demand the Georgia result be overturned.
      “Your governor could stop it very easily if he knew what the hell he was doing,” Trump told supporters, adding: “For whatever reason your secretary of state and your governor are afraid of Stacey Abrams.”
      Abrams, a staunch voting rights advocate who Kemp beat for governor in 2018, helped drive turnout and secure the state for Biden, the first Democrat to win it since 1992.
      On Sunday, Duncan was asked if Kemp would do as Trump asks, and call a special session of the state general assembly to appoint its own electors for Trump, a demand one critic called “shockingly undemocratic”.
      “I absolutely believe that to be the case that the governor is not going to call us into a special session,” Duncan said.
      In an angry intervention earlier this week, Georgia elections official Gabriel Sterling said of Trump’s attacks on Kemp, Raffensperger and other Republicans: “Someone’s gonna get hurt, someone’s gonna get shot. Someone’s gonna get killed. And it’s not right. It has all gone too far.”
      Duncan said “we’ve all all of us … got increased security around us and our families [but] we’re going to continue to do our jobs. Governor Kemp, Brad Raffensperger and myself, all three voted and campaigned for the president, but unfortunately he didn’t win the state of Georgia.”
      Duncan sidestepped a question about the wisdom of holding a rally where many attendees did not wear masks, as coronavirus cases surge. But he did call Biden’s request that Americans to wear masks for 100 days “absolutely a great step in the right direction”.
      On Saturday, the Washington Post found only 27 of 249 congressional Republicans were willing to acknowledge Biden’s victory. Duncan did so.
      “On 20 January Joe Biden’s going to be sworn in as the 46th president and the constitution is still in place,” Duncan said. “This is still America … as the lieutenant governor and as a Georgian I’m proud that we’re able to look up after three recounts and be able to see that this election was fair.”
      Raffensperger told ABC’s This Week: “We don’t see anything that would overturn the will of the people here in Georgia.”
      It was “sad, but true”, he added, that Trump had lost.
      “I wish he would have won. I’m a conservative Republican and I’m disappointed but those are the results.”
      In Valdosta, Trump did seem at points to recognise the end is near. With reference to policy on Iran and China, he described “what we would have done in the next four years”. He also said that if he thought he had lost the election, he would be “a very gracious loser”.
      “I’d go to Florida,” he said. “I’d take it easy.” More