Vice President Kamala Harris confirmed in a recent interview with NBC News that her campaign is ready to respond if Donald Trump declares victory on election night before all votes are counted. In the discussion, Harris emphasized her campaign's preparedness for any scenario, particularly given Trump’s history of challenging election results.
"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, assuring that her team has the "resources, expertise, and focus" necessary to deal with election night and the days that follow. When asked by the anchor about whether her team is prepared for Trump prematurely declaring victory, Harris confirmed, “Of course.”
Harris expressed concern over Trump’s past actions, recalling his attempts to overturn the 2020 election and his role in inciting the January 6th Capitol riot. “This is a serious matter,” she said, noting the critical choice facing Americans in the upcoming election. “The American people are at this point two weeks out, being presented with a very, very serious decision about what will be the future of our country.”
A memo from the Harris campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC), obtained by NBC News, reinforced this readiness, stating that the 2024 election is already the "most litigated in American history". The memo also highlighted the team’s extensive preparations, describing how veteran lawyers have been working on multiple scenarios and coordinating legal strategies to protect the integrity of the election.
“Democrats are prepared and enter this final stretch with a playbook to protect the integrity of our elections — before and after November 5,” the memo reads, the report mentioned. It outlines how the campaign’s legal team, which fought in the 2020 election, has spent months drafting legal briefs and working with hundreds of lawyers in battleground states to be ready for any challenges that may arise.
As the 2024 presidential election approaches, former President Donald Trump continues to cast doubt on the legitimacy of the 2020 results, asserting the false claim that the election was "stolen" from him. Despite losing to President Joe Biden, Trump prematurely proclaimed victory on election night in 2020, and has since fueled widespread mistrust in the electoral process among his supporters.
Throughout his 2024 campaign, Trump has frequently repeated these allegations, using them as a rallying cry in his campaigns. Trump’s statements have resonated with many of his supporters and remain a key talking point in his campaign.
Trump’s insistence that the 2020 election was rigged has led to numerous legal challenges and investigations, none of which have found evidence of widespread voter fraud. His attempts to overturn the election results culminated in the January 6th Capitol riot, where a mob of his supporters stormed the US Capitol in an attempt to stop the certification of Biden’s victory.
With just weeks remaining before election day, Trump’s unsubstantiated claims and his continued rhetoric raises concerns about the potential for unrest or further challenges to the democratic process, regardless of the outcome in November.