On Rigged Elections and Voter Fraud, Randy Evans Adds Fuel to the Fire
In the closing weeks of the 2016 presidential elections, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has been suggesting that the elections process is rigged, and that voter fraud was likely. On Monday, he tweeted, “Of course there is large scale voter fraud happening on and before election day. Why do Republican leaders deny what is going on? So naive!” In one of his rallies, he encouraged his supporters to “go out and watch” polling places in parts of Pennsylvania, darkly alluding to the possibility of people voting multiple times for Democrats in certain precincts.
All of this has raised concern among elections officials, fearing not only that some voters might be intimidated from voting, but also that confidence in the fairness of elections could be shaken. The linked Washington Post story quotes Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted as saying, “Any time that your comments draw into question the legitimacy of the elections process, they have crossed the line, particularly if you can’t back it up with evidence.”
Despite efforts by most Republicans and elections officials to squelch Trump’s rumors of a rigged election, Georgia Republican National Committeeman Randy Evans was quoted in a Buzzfeed story as not being convinced the election would not be rigged:
“History has proven that some elections have involved serious questions and it remains a possibility in 2016,” Randy Evans, the chairman of the Republican National Lawyers Association (RNLA) and a partner at the global law firm Dentons, told BuzzFeed News. “Only the rule of law performed by election workers enforced by lawyers informed by citizens decided by courts is the only sure way of making sure elections are open, fair, and honest. Time will tell whether that happens in 2016.”
Asked directly about Trump’s comments, Evans said it was “premature to say now” whether the candidate’s words are appropriate or correct.
At a minimum, Evans’s comments do nothing to disavow Trump’s claims, and it’s even possible that Evans is adding a stamp of approval to the GOP candidate’s theory that there is and will be widespread voter fraud in this election, a theory that Politifact rates as “Pants on Fire.“
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Jon Richards
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Gore asked for a recount when it was legitimate to do so and got called a sore loser for it. This guy… I guess this talk is a sign that he expects to lose. There is no question in my mind that if he were to win, hell even if he loses, he intends to do to America what he has done to the Republican party.
What Gore also did, once the Supreme Court finally called a halt to the recount because time ran out (basically) was to concede the election to GWB, thereby maintaining confidence in the Republic’s ability to have a peaceful transfer of power.
At this point, there is reason to wonder if Trump would do the same if the election were close.
At this point, there is reason to wonder if Trump would do the same if the election weren’t close at all.
FYP.
“At this point, there is reason to wonder if Trump would do the same if the election were close.” It’s not going to be close and I hope that the most diehard Trump supporters know that the election wasn’t rigged when Hillary wins by 6 million plus votes.
http://www.npr.org/2016/10/17/498292055/ohio-secretary-of-state-calls-trumps-rigged-election-claims-irresponsible
“MCEVERS: All that said, you are planning to vote for Donald Trump. Is that right?
HUSTED: That’s correct. I’m a person that cares a lot about who the Supreme Court nominees are. I’m a Second Amendment supporter. I believe that the kind of people that he will appoint to positions in government more represent my point of view of the world. But I’m left without very good choices, in my opinion. I don’t really think much of Hillary Clinton’s conduct in office. I don’t think very much of Donald Trump’s conduct in this campaign.
I just call him as I see him. I think when our candidates do things that are wrong, we should call them out on that whether we intend to vote for them or not.”
Randy Evans, a partisan (RNC) and involved in state elections at the highest level (State Election Board), comments on the legitimacy of elections deserve attention.
Remember the comments of Jack Welch, who as GE Chairman was presided over extraordinarily uniform earnings, claiming the unemployment numbers of the Obama administration were fradulent? The claim, combined with GE’s earning becoming more routinely irregular after Welch’s departure, was cause to Welch made the claim because he took liberties with the books at GE.
Does Evans know of liberties taken in elections in Georgia?