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- Georgia's Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said President Trump "should leave quietly," after the state's election recount confirmed President-elect Joe Biden's win.
- "When you lose an election, you should leave quietly. It's the will of the people that has been expressed," he told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in an article published on Saturday.
- Raffensperger has found himself the subject of intense criticism by the Trump campaign after Georgia turned blue for the first time in nearly 30 years.
- Earlier this week, President Trump called Raffensperger "an enemy of the people" and accused him, without evidence, of hiding "tens of thousands" of illegal votes.
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Georgia's Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said it would be best for President Trump to "leave quietly," after the state's election recount confirmed President-elect Joe Biden's win.
In an interview published in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Saturday, Raffensperger, who is a Republican, said he had wished the 2020 election would have "been a resounding trumping of the left," but that "it didn't work out that way."
When asked if he had a message for the president, Raffensperger said: "My job as secretary of state is to make sure we have fair and honest elections, follow the law, follow the process. When you lose an election, you should leave quietly."
"It's the will of the people that has been expressed," he added.
Raffensperger's comments come as President Trump called him "an enemy of the people" on Thanksgiving night and accused him, without evidence, of making a "deal" with the Democrat Stacey Abrams to allow vote harvesting in Georgia.
In another tweet, Trump also falsely claimed that Raffensperger was hiding "tens of thousands" of illegal votes.
When asked about his response during the interview, Raffensperger hadn't seen the tweet yet, adding: "Did he at least spell my name right? It's 'Raffensperger' with a 'p,' not a 'b.' "
Georgia certified Biden's victory last week despite a legal challenge from the Trump campaign.
The president-elect won by 12,670 votes, according to The Washington Post.
Unlike many Republicans in the state, Raffensperger endorsed Trump for president in early 2016, before he was even the clear GOP front-runner.
Trump also endorsed Raffensperger for the role of Georgia secretary of state in 2018, tweeting at the time that he would be "fantastic" and "great for jobs."
In the aftermath of the 2020 election, Raffensperger has found himself the subject of intense criticism by the Trump campaign after Georgia turned blue for the first time in nearly 30 years.
Last week, Raffensperger told a local TV station he and his wife have been receiving death threats ever since.
"It's vulgar," he said during his interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "It's disgusting."
In an interview with Insider earlier this month, Raffensperger described the 2020 election as "the most secure election ever."
He dismissed voter fraud claims. "Every time these rumors come up, it's like the rumor whack-a-mole, we go ahead and we address it, and we have a transparent process and we have press releases on a daily basis ... but also there's been a lot of misinformation and honestly, disinformation or outright lying."
- Read more:
- An anonymous group of top US CEOs said they would hold off acting against Trump until after the Georgia recount. It's done.
- Georgia's Republican secretary of state and his wife received texts telling them they deserve 'to face a firing squad' as Trump escalated his attacks on election results
- Stacey Abrams helped register 800,000 voters and flipped Georgia for Biden. Here's what anyone can learn from her ability to inspire and influence others.
- There is 'no doubt' Joe Biden won Georgia, says Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger
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