By William J. Furney
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has repeated his claim that the 2020 election he lost to Joe Biden was stolen and vowed to go after anyone involved in election interference in November’s vote.
The former president’s comments come as he prepares to debate his Democratic rival, Vice President Kamala Harris, in an eagerly anticipated showdown that will be hosted by ABC News on September 10.
Writing on his Truth Social platform late on Saturday, Trump said: “CEASE & DESIST: I, together with many Attorneys and Legal Scholars, am watching the Sanctity of the 2024 Presidential Election very closely because I know, better than most, the rampant Cheating and Skulduggery that has taken place by the Democrats in the 2020 Presidential Election.”
He said the previous election “was a Disgrace to our Nation!” and that “the 2024 Election, where Votes have just started being cast, will be under the closest professional scrutiny and, WHEN I WIN, those people that CHEATED will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the Law, which will include long term prison sentences so that this Depravity of Justice does not happen again.”
The presidential election takes place on November 5 but voters in 15 states can cast their ballots from September 16, with Pennsylvanians the first to vote. Other early voting states include Minnesota, from September 20; California, starting October 7; and Arizona, where voters can make their choice from October 9.
Trump was seeking a second term in office when he lost the 2020 election to Biden, and called it “rigged and stolen.” He assembled a legal team that filed challenges to the results in courts around the country, moves that ended in failure when no evidence was found of vote tampering.
Trump has been indicted for election interference, at federal level and in Georgia, for allegedly urging his supporters to protest the 2020 election result at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. Thousands of his followers turned up and rioting broke out as protesters clashed with police and stormed Congressional buildings. Trump denies the charges.
Trump also said in his social media post that, if returned to the White House this November, he would prosecute anyone involved in election tampering, including “Lawyers, Political Operatives, Donors, Illegal Voters, & Corrupt Election Officials.
“Those involved in unscrupulous behaviour will be sought out, caught and prosecuted at levels, unfortunately, never seen before in our Country,” he said.
* Photo credit: PA/file