With Donald Trump’s election denialism looming over the 2024 presidential race, Kamala Harris said she is prepared for her opponent to prematurely declare a victory on election night, as he did four years ago.
In an interview with NBC News on Tuesday, Harris said that she is currently focused on winning the race, but added that she is ready for Trump to potentially attempt to steal the election.
“We’ve got two weeks to go, and I’m very much grounded in the present, in terms of the task at hand,” Harris said. “And we will deal with election night and the days after as they come, and we have the resources and the expertise and the focus on that as well.”
In 2020, Trump declared victory against Joe Biden shortly after 2 a.m. ET on election night — before all the votes were counted.
In 2020, Trump declared victory against Joe Biden shortly after 2 a.m. ET on election night — before all the votes were counted, including in key battleground states. In the current race, which is expected to be razor-thin, Democrats have steeled themselves for the possibility that Trump will again try to subvert the election in the event of a narrow defeat.
The Republican presidential nominee and his allies have spent months sowing doubt about election security. Trump has repeatedly refused to commit to accepting the results and has hinted at political violence if he does not win. He also has filled the highest ranks of GOP leadership with election deniers.
Republican officials have filed a slew of lawsuits in battleground states that are ostensibly aimed at preventing widespread voter fraud (of which there is no evidence), setting the stage for the GOP to legally challenge an election loss. Meanwhile, Democrats are largely playing defense, including going up against these Republican lawsuits in court.