Donald Trump told to put his ‘big boy pants on and accept that he lost’ by Philadelphia mayor Jim Kenney

Mr Kenney said the Trump campaign “has not produced one iota of evidence” to prove voter fraud in the city
People urge for all votes to be counted as they demonstrate outside the Pennsylvania Convention Center
AP
Daniel O'Mahony6 November 2020

As Joe Biden extended his lead in Pennsylvania and millions waited anxiously for a final result in the state, the mayor of its biggest city had a blunt message for Donald Trump.

“What the President needs to do frankly is put his big boy pants on. He needs to accept that he lost and congratulate the winner,” Philadelphia mayor Jim Kenney told reporters on Friday.

Mr Kenney said the Trump campaign “has not produced one iota of evidence” to prove voter fraud in the city, following days of baseless allegations by the president and his surrogates.

He added: “[He needs to] stop this and let us move forward as a country.”

Mr Kenney made the comments as election officials said it could take days to finish the count in Pennsylvania, which has emerged as the decisive battleground in the tight race to the White House.

At one point after polls closed on Tuesday, Joe Biden had trailed Mr Trump in the state by more than half a million votes.

But that early lead proved to be the “red mirage” of Trump supporters who had voted in-person on Tuesday. As counters began tallying mail-in ballots — a voting method promoted by Democrats, but scorned by the president — the “blue wave” carried Mr Biden into the lead.

Clinching Pennsylvania’s 20 electoral college votes would take Mr Biden past the magic 270 needed to win the White House, with a number of states still to declare a result.

As of 1pm ET on Friday, Mr Biden’s lead had grown to 12,000 votes in Pennsylvania, with 96 per cent of ballots counted.

At the press conference on Friday, Philadelphia officials said there was still 40,000 votes to count, including military or overseas voters or ballots that require review.

Another update of between 2,000 and 3,000 votes is expected later on Friday, but the remaining votes could take a few more days.

In an earlier press conference Democratic congresswoman Nancy Peloisi referred to Mr Biden as  the “president-elect” and said he had a “strong mandate” to lead.  

Throughout Friday Mr Trump continued his barrage of conspiracy theories and baseless accusations of voter fraud. 

“This is about the integrity of the entire election process,” he said in a statement released shortly after the Philadelphia press conference.

Republican senator Mitt Romney, who lost the 2012 presidential election to Barack Obama, said that Mr Trump’s claim that the election was rigged “damages the cause of freedom”.


“The President is within his rights to request recounts, to call for investigation of alleged voting irregularities where evidence exists, and to exhaust legal remedies,” he said in a statement posted on Twitter.
“Doing these things is consistent with our election process.


“He is wrong to say the election was rigged, corrupt and stolen.


“Doing so damages the cause of freedom here and around the world, weakens the institutions that lie in the foundation of the republic, and recklessly inflames destructive and dangerous passions.”

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