Hillary asks Biden to not concede to Trump 'under any circumstances', predicts election is 'going to drag out'
Former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, who unsuccessfully contested Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election, has a piece of advice for Joe Biden, who will take on the incumbent this November. She has asked the former vice president not to concede the election “under any circumstances” predicting that the voting will drag beyond Election Day which is November 3. Hillary, who won more popular vote than Trump four years ago but lost on electoral votes, met her own former communications director Jennifer Palmieri for a virtual interview for HBO’s ‘The Circus’ where she aired her caution.
Referring to her own disappointing experience of 2016 when she got nearly three million votes more than Trump but still lost the poll in the key Electoral College (EC), the 72-year-old said the incumbent might hold a “narrow advantage” in the EC on Election Day. “You can win 3 million more votes and still not get elected because of the Electoral College. It all comes down to the Electoral College,” she said with a laugh. Then, guiding Biden, Hillary said, “Joe Biden should not concede under any circumstances because I think this is going to drag out, and eventually I do believe he will win if we don't give an inch and if we are as focused and relentless as the other side is.”
Hillary Clinton has some advice for Joe Biden: Don’t concede in a close race.
— The Recount (@therecount) August 24, 2020
The 2016 nominee sits down with @jmpalmieri and @sho_thecircus to urge Dems to pay close attention to GOP strategy. pic.twitter.com/REwfLf1QjS
Hillary, who was speaking from her Chappaqua residence from where she addressed the Democratic National Convention (DNC) last week, gestured with her hands for emphasis as she advised Biden to hold firm. Her interviewer threw her arms up to show that she was in agreement with her. The Democratic camp has been apprehensive about how Trump would react if he goes on to lose the election. The incumbent has found himself embattled with a number of challenges, ranging from the coronavirus pandemic to the race riots, with Biden gradually taking a lead in the pre-poll surveys.
Biden has feared that Trump might postpone the elections and the military might have to interfere to remove him from the White House if he didn’t vacate it after a loss. More recently, he expressed concern that the president might try to “steal” the election. Trump and his top aides, on the other hand, have slammed the Democrats for seeking mail-in voting alleging it would lead to a wide electoral malpractice. Hillary accused the Republicans of “messing up absentee balloting” during the interview and pointed to the primary elections in Wisconsin. “They believe that helps them so that they then get maybe a narrow advantage in the Electoral College on Election Day. 'They did everything they could to mess up voting. Democrats actually won some important races there,” the veteran said.
Both parties preparing for legal battles over polls
Sensing that the election results might not be smooth, both the major parties are lining up legal experts for possible state-by-state court fights over issues related to the election. “We've got to have a massive legal operation. I know the Biden campaign is working on that. We have to have our own teams of people to counter the force of intimidation that Republicans and Trump are going to put outside polling places,” Hillary said.
Hillary slammed Trump during her DNC speech last week saying things will get worse for America if the Republican gets his second term and called for unity among the opponent voters. Hillary, like Biden, also feared that Trump can steal the election and asked the Democrats to secure an overwhelming number of votes so that Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris did not taste a disappointment like she did four years ago.