The 2020 election deniers running in swing states
President Donald Trump has spent years making false claims about election fraud, including his refusal to accept that he lost the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden. Since that election, Republicans who denied or questioned the results have taken positions on local election boards, worked inside election offices, trained poll observers, and sought to influence […]
Presidential candidate Donald Trump has persistently promoted false claims of election fraud since his loss in the 2020 election. Numerous Republican politicians and election officials, now running for governor or other high-ranking positions in crucial swing states, have joined in questioning the validity of the 2020 results. These individuals could play significant roles in supervising future elections if elected.
Sean Rameswaram, co-host of Today, Explained, spoke with Andrew Kaczynski, an investigative journalist with CNN, about these election denial candidates and their potential impact on future elections. The conversation focused on the five key swing states where elections are taking place: Arizona, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Georgia.
All of these states were won by Trump in 2016, Biden in 2020, and Trump again in 2024. In four of these states, there are candidates who have explicitly denied the 2020 election results. While polling is inconsistent in these contests, the candidates and their statements about the 2020 election results appear to be a disadvantage for them.
In Michigan, for instance, John James, who had previously lost two Senate races and then won a seat in Congress, initially denied the 2020 election. However, he later praised Trump's endorsement and stated that Trump won Michigan three times. Similarly, Andy Biggs, another candidate in Arizona, claimed that a governor could have invalidated the results if they wanted to.
Despite these denials, three out of the four candidates who denied the 2020 election have stated they would certify the winner and accept the results if reelected. This behavior raises concerns about the potential influence of these candidates in overseeing future elections and the broader efforts to legitimize Trump's alleged election fraud narrative within the Republican Party and the broader political landscape.
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