The United States Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to stop Pennsylvania from certifying President-elect Joe Biden’s victory, in a setback to outgoing President Donald Trump, Reuters reported.
The court rejected Republican congressman Mike Kelly’s challenge to the legality of mail-in ballots in the state. Kelly and other Pennsylvania Republicans had filed a lawsuit after the November 3 election, seeking that up to 2.5 million [25 lakh] mail-in ballots be discarded.
The Supreme Court issued a one-line order, without any comment from the nine justices, CNN reported.
Before the court’s verdict, Trump had directly appealed to the court and state officials to help him overturn the Pennsylvania election results. “Let’s see whether or not somebody has the courage, whether it’s legislators or legislatures or a justice of the Supreme Court or a number of justices of the Supreme Court,” he said. “Let’s see if they have the courage to do what everybody in this country knows is right.”
Also read:
- US appeals court rejects Trump campaign’s lawsuit challenging election in Pennsylvania
- We will still win,’ says Donald Trump, urges Georgia governor to overturn results
Biden won the key key battleground state of Pennsylvania by 80,000 votes. He also secured more mail-in votes than Trump.
Last month, a federal appeals court had also rejected the Trump campaign’s attempt to block Biden from being declared the winner of Pennsylvania. The court said the Trump campaign did not have any proof to support their claims of election fraud.
In a television interview on November 29, Trump had suggested that he will never concede to Biden and continued to claim, without evidence, that the election was rigged.
The Trump campaign and its supporters have tried and failed to convince judges of election irregularities in Michigan, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada, all of which are critical to Biden’s victory. A request for recount in Wisconsin also confirmed on November 29 that Biden had won the key swing state by a margin of about 20,600 votes, AP reported. Biden won the Electoral College vote – the state-by-state competition deciding the winner – by 306 to 232.
Trump had time till December 8 to challenge and resolve election disputes before the Electoral College meets on December 14 to formally declare the winner.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!