Georgia Election Chief to Trump: Drop the Fraud Allegations

December 3, 2020by David Wickert and Greg Bluestein, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (TNS)
Georgia Election Chief to Trump: Drop the Fraud Allegations

ATLANTA — Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Wednesday called on President Donald Trump to drop unproven allegations of voting fraud in the state.

At a news conference at the Georgia Capitol, Raffensperger decried Trump’s continued insistence that voter fraud cost him the election in Georgia and elsewhere. The secretary cited this week’s comments by U.S. Attorney General William Barr, who said federal investigators have seen no evidence of widespread fraud that would affect the outcome of the election, which was won by former Vice President Joe Biden.

” President Trump’s Justice Department has seen no widespread fraud,” Raffensperger said. “They have had multiple investigations, like us. And our investigators have seen no widespread fraud, either.”

The secretary’s comments come as Trump’s supporters continue to press claims of voter fraud in court. Attorneys handling two of those lawsuits held a news conference Wednesday in Alpharetta, repeating unsubstantiated claims that the election was stolen. So far, their allegations have not held up in court.

Raffensperger’s comments also came a day after one of his top deputies, Gabriel Sterling, blasted Trump and Georgia U.S. Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue for remaining silent as some of the president’s angry supporters threatened several people involved in Georgia elections. After Sterling’s comments, both senators and Trump’s campaign issued statements condemning such threats.

Raffensperger, who has received threats and is protected by a security detail, said he supported Sterling’s comments. And he took his own turn criticizing Trump on Wednesday.

“Even after this office requested that President Trump try to quell the violent rhetoric being borne out of these continuing claims of winning the states that he obviously lost, he tweeted out ‘expose the massive voter fraud in Georgia,'” the secretary said. “This is exactly the kind of language that is at the base of a growing threat environment for election workers who are simply doing their jobs.”

At a rally in an Alpharetta park, hundreds of Trump supporters cheered as a series of speakers outlined their dreams of overturning the election results.

Egged on by Atlanta attorney Lin Wood, the crowd booed the mention of Gov. Brian Kemp’s name and chanted “lock him up.” Wood said Kemp and other Republicans should be held to account for not doing more to help Trump’s unsubstantiated claims of a rigged election.

And Sidney Powell, the former Trump attorney who was disavowed by his campaign, said the president’s backers should think twice about voting in the Jan. 5 runoffs until sweeping changes are made to the electoral system.

“I would encourage all Georgians to make it known that you will not vote at all unless your vote is secure,” Powell said.

At a second news conference Wednesday, Sterling disputed the pair’s claim that Georgia’s election system had switched votes from Trump to Biden. He said the state’s recent hand audit of every ballot proved no votes were switched. And he said Powell and Wood lied when asked about the hand count at the rally.

“They said: ‘No, no, that wasn’t a hand audit. They used machines to count it,'” Sterling said. “They lied to the people who are believing them to their face. It’s this kind of lying and this kind of rhetoric that’s continuing to inflame passions on the ground unnecessarily. And it’s wrong.”

The comments came on the final day of a recount of the presidential election in Georgia. Raffensperger expected all 159 of Georgia’s counties to meet the midnight deadline.

Raffensperger said there had been no substantial differences from the previous tally of votes in the counties that had completed their work. But if there are any variations, counties will need to recertify the results. The state expects to recertify the election by Friday.

___

(c)2020 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, Ga.)

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

A+
a-
  • Donald Trump
  • Georgia
  • state news
  • voter fraud
  • In The News

    Health

    Voting

    State News

    Great Basin Tribes Want Bahsahwahbee Massacre Site in Nevada Named National Monument

    ELY, Nev. (AP) — White attackers turned a lush, high desert oasis in eastern Nevada, with its bubbling springs and... Read More

    ELY, Nev. (AP) — White attackers turned a lush, high desert oasis in eastern Nevada, with its bubbling springs and a rare stand of Rocky Mountain junipers, into killing fields. They massacred hundreds of Native people there in the 1800s — a horrific history once retold... Read More

    In Milwaukee, Biden Looks to Highlight Progress for Black-Owned Small Businesses

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is aiming to use a visit to the battleground state of Wisconsin on Wednesday... Read More

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is aiming to use a visit to the battleground state of Wisconsin on Wednesday to spotlight a surge in federal government support for Black-owned small businesses during his White House tenure and to highlight his administration's efforts to ramp up... Read More

    Why More Women Live in Major East Coast Counties While Men Outnumber Them in West

    Anyone who has suspected that there are more women than men where they live, or vice versa, will find fodder... Read More

    Anyone who has suspected that there are more women than men where they live, or vice versa, will find fodder for their suspicions in new data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Whether it refutes or confirms their suspicions likely depends on where they live. Women outnumber... Read More

    Ranked Choice Voting Bill Moves to Hearing in Front of Wis. Senate Elections Committee

    MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A bipartisan bill that would dramatically change how Wisconsin residents choose congressional candidates by asking them... Read More

    MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A bipartisan bill that would dramatically change how Wisconsin residents choose congressional candidates by asking them to rank their top choices instead of voting for one of two candidates is headed for its first public hearing. The state Senate's election committee was... Read More

    Democrats Eye Wisconsin High Court's Liberal Majority to Win Abortion, Redistricting Rulings

    MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin's Supreme Court will flip from majority conservative to liberal control in August and Democrats have... Read More

    MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin's Supreme Court will flip from majority conservative to liberal control in August and Democrats have high hopes the change will lead to the state's abortion ban being overturned and its maps redrawn to weaken GOP control of the Legislature and congressional districts. Democrats... Read More

    States Confront Medical Debt That's Bankrupting Millions

    DENVER (AP) — Cindy Powers was driven into bankruptcy by 19 life-saving abdominal operations. Medical debt started stacking up for... Read More

    DENVER (AP) — Cindy Powers was driven into bankruptcy by 19 life-saving abdominal operations. Medical debt started stacking up for Lindsey Vance after she crashed her skateboard and had to get nine stitches in her chin. And for Misty Castaneda, open heart surgery for a disease... Read More

    News From The Well
    scroll top