After sidestepping questions for months on whether Donald Trump lost to President Joe Biden four years ago, Republican vice-presidential nominee JD Vance, for the first time on Wednesday, asserted that the former President did not lose the 2020 election. Talking to reporters at a campaign event in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, Trump’s running mate said that there were “serious problems in 2020,” referring to alleged censorship by tech companies.
“On the election of 2020, I’ve answered this question directly a million times. No! I think there are serious problems in 2020,” Vance said, according to a report by Reuters.
“So, did Donald Trump lose the election in 2020? Not by the words that I would use,” he said in his most direct answer to the question yet. He added that he “really couldn’t care less” if anyone agrees with him or disagrees with him on this issue.
Vance, instead, emphasized he was focused on social media censorship, referring to a decision by X (formally Twitter) to temporarily block users from sharing a story about Hunter Biden’s laptop.
Trump’s Claim On 2020 Presidential Results
Donald Trump continues to falsely claim that he lost the 2020 election due to extensive voter fraud, a view shared by millions of his supporters. However, numerous inquiries have found no evidence of fraud. During his current run for president, the Republican candidate has suggested he will challenge the results if he does not prevail in the November 5 contest against Vice President Kamala Harris.
Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election led to his indictment by federal and state officials. He still awaits trial in those cases. His refusal to accept the outcome also sparked the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol by thousands of his supporters.
Vance’s Stance Of Trump’s Claim
Vance, a first-term US senator, made headlines when he sidestepped the question during his debate with Harris’ running mate, Tim Walz, on October 1, saying he was focused on “the future.” He had also danced around the question when he was asked five times during an interview with the New York Times, and when questioned about it multiple times on the campaign trail.
In Williamsport, Vance said he was not espousing “some crazy conspiracy theory” in arguing Trump won. Instead, he blamed the election outcome on online censorship by large tech companies.
Pennsylvania is considered perhaps the most critical of the seven battleground states that will determine the election.