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Senate Republicans reject Trump claim that election results may "never" be known

Sen. Marco Rubio speaking with reporters in July. Photo: Caroline Brehman/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Multiple Senate Republicans on Thursday disavowed President Trump's claim that the results of the 2020 election may remain unknown indefinitely, Politico reports.

Why it matters: Twitter flagged a tweet of the president's on Thursday as a potentially misleading statement after he said without evidence that because of mail-in ballots: "the Nov 3rd Election result may NEVER BE ACCURATELY DETERMINED, which is what some want."

What they're saying:

  • Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.): “It’s just not accurate. I don’t think we’ll have inaccurate election results," Rubio said, per Politico. “They may take a lot longer than they ever have because of the amount of mailed ballots that are going to come in and so forth. But I don’t have any concerns about the accuracy of the election.”
  • Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.): “I’m confident the election process is going to work just fine.”
  • Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah): “We will know the results of the November election.”
  • Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) defended no-excuses-needed absentee ballots, saying they have worked "very well" in her state.
  • Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said he is concerned that results might be unclear until after Election Day, but “eventually” the U.S. will have a winner.
  • Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said he has “no reason to believe” the results will be inaccurate.

Meanwhile, House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy is privately encouraging voting by mail and warned Trump that the GOP could be "screwed" by his fight against mail-in voting, Axios' Alayna Treene writes.

The big picture: FBI Director Chris Wray told Congress on Thursday that his greatest concern related to election security is the "steady drumbeat of misinformation and sort of amplification of smaller cyber intrusions" that could sow distrust in the results of the election.

  • Wray called for confidence in the electoral process, but said he fears "people will take on a feeling of futility because of all of the noise and confusion that’s generated, and that’s a very hard problem to combat."

Go deeper

Stef W. Kight
Dec 16, 2020 - Politics & Policy

Georgia's early voting starts with heavy turnout

Voters wait in line to vote at the Buckhead Library in Atlanta on the first day of in-person early voting for the Georgia Senate runoff election. Photo: Jason Armond/Getty Images

Georgia's on an early path to a huge turnout in the two runoffs to decide control of the U.S. Senate, according to data from the Georgia Secretary of State's Office crunched by Axios.

By the numbers: Voters cast 482,000 ballots in roughly the first day and a half of early voting this week. That’s equivalent to one-third of the total in the last statewide general election runoff, held in 2018, and about one-fourth of the total ballots in the last Senate runoff, held in 2008.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Alayna Treene, author of Sneak Peek
Dec 15, 2020 - Politics & Policy

McConnell urges Republicans not to contest Biden win on Jan. 6

Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his leadership team urged fellow Republicans on a conference call today not to participate in any efforts to object to certifying Joe Biden's presidential election win in the Jan. 6 joint session, two sources on the call tell Axios.

Why it matters: This is about politics as much as about doing the right thing. McConnell expressed concern about such a vote, because the GOP would have to vote it down — something that could damage incumbents up for re-election in 2022.

Go deeper (<1 min. read)Arrow
Alayna Treene, author of Sneak Peek
Updated Dec 15, 2020 - Politics & Policy

McConnell congratulates Joe Biden on becoming president-elect

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) officially addressed Joe Biden as president-elect on Tuesday, saying in a speech on the Senate floor: "The Electoral College has spoken."

Why it matters: McConnell is the most prominent Republican to concede that President Trump lost the November election and congratulate Biden on his victory.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow