International Observers Invited By Trump Saw No Evidence Of Election Fraud
Reprinted with permission from DailyKos
President Donald Trump resumed his usual claims of pending victory Tuesday in an election that has been called for his opponent, Joe Biden, since Saturday. "WE WILL WIN!" the soon-exiting president tweeted optimistically and with little regard for reality. Biden has earned 290 electoral votes to Trump's 214 and secured nearly 77 million votes in total to Trump's 72 million, according to the Associated Press.
And to make matters worse for the persistent yet sore loser, the same international observers his administration invited to scope out alleged systematic election fraud found no such sign of deceit, according to a preliminary reportThe Wall Street Journal obtained. That means no such glimmer of hope for Trump.
The Organization of American States sent a team of 28 experts from 13 countries to polling places in Georgia, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, and the District of Columbia on Election Day to monitor the polls from opening to close. The team also visited centers used to tally the results, authors of the report stated.
"While the OAS Mission has not directly observed any serious irregularities that call into question the results so far, it supports the right of all contesting parties in an election, to seek redress before the competent legal authorities when they believe they have been wronged," they said. "It is critical however, that candidates act responsibly by presenting and arguing legitimate claims before the courts, not unsubstantiated or harmful speculation in the public media."
The release of the report Friday follows repeated unsubstantiated claims from Trump regarding the election. He tweeted on Monday: "Pennsylvania prevented us from watching much of the Ballot count. Unthinkable and illegal in this country." Twitter has since flagged the tweet as "disputed."
Pennsylvania prevented us from watching much of the Ballot count. Unthinkable and illegal in this country.— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1604953067.0
"There is zero evidence to back up this claim," CNN reported in its fact check. "Local, state and federal officials have not reported any major incidents that could call into question the legitimacy of how poll watchers were treated in Pennsylvania. There have been some instances where poll workers did not understand the rules and those were handled by the district attorney but registered poll watchers have been allowed at polling places."
With the support of GOP attorneys, Trump also claimed, "Nevada is turning out to be a cesspool of Fake Votes." The lawyers claimed more than 3,000 voters appeared to have "violated the law by casting ballots after they moved from NV." State election officials, however, told The Wall Street Journalthose voters are actually service members who legally voted in Nevada before being transferred out of the state.
WATCH FOR MASSIVE BALLOT COUNTING ABUSE AND, JUST LIKE THE EARLY VACCINE, REMEMBER I TOLD YOU SO!— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1605022386.0
"Donald Trump lost. His claim of widespread voter fraud is baseless," Sen. Cory Booker tweeted Tuesday. "There is zero evidence.We must all, regardless of party or candidate preference, reject Trump's efforts to undermine the bedrock principles that have made us the oldest continuous democracy on Earth."
The Organization of American States concluded:
"While the environment of the elections was competitive and fraught, the ability of voters across the country to access the vote in less than ideal circumstances, exemplifies the democracy for which the United States is renowned and which it has championed across the globe.The OAS Mission urges all political parties, candidates and citizens to allow this democracy to prevail and to allow the remainder of the electoral process to unfold within the framework of the law."
Michael Georg Link, leader of the Organization for Security and Cooperation observer mission, called allegations of election fraud "baseless," The Wall Street Journal reported. "Baseless allegations of systematic deficiencies, notably by the incumbent president, including on election night, harm public trust in democratic institutions," he said.