Issue Summary:
In the United States presidential election of 2020, incumbent Republican president Donald Trump made multiple claims of widespread election fraud by Democrats, which would invalidate the election results that showed that the Democratic candidate Joseph Biden had won the election. Republicans were understandably upset and concerned at the allegations, and Democrats were as well, since widespread fraud would undermine the integrity of the country’s free and fair elections, one of the foundational and most essential principles of the nation.
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Q: Was the integrity of the 2020 U.S. presidential election compromised? In other words, was the 2020 election invalid due to fraud?
A: No. After numerous bipartisan investigations, the 2020 official election results were declared legitimate. Multiple bipartisan election officials, courts/judges, and expert studies found no evidence of any of the widespread fraud that had been alleged.
From the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center (CLC): https://campaignlegal.org/factchecking-resources
From the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) journal: https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2103619118
From the Wall Street Journal: https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-founders-anticipated-the-threat-of-trump-becda1b?msockid=344874d1526b6f3b2dea61cc530a6e43
From the New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/17/us/politics/trump-election-lies-fact-check.html
From the BBC: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-us-2020-55016029
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Q: Were there any consequences for the media outlets that publicized that the election had been “rigged” or “stolen” without any evidence?
A: Donald Trump was indicted on August 1, 2023 for his role in attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election without any evidence. Trump was charged with Conspiracy to Defraud the United Staes, Conspiracy to Obstruct an Official Proceeding, Obstruction of and Attempt to Obstruct an Official Proceeding, and Conspiracy Against Rights.
Copy of Indictment from the Associated Press: https://apnews.com/trump-election-2020-indictment
Indictment Details from Fact Check.org: https://www.factcheck.org/2023/08/indictment-details-trumps-attempt-to-overturn-swing-state-election-outcomes/
Additionally, the false allegations of voting fraud resulted in a successful defamation lawsuit by the voting machine company Dominion, whose reputation had been damaged by the news outlets that had previously reported that there had been fraud without any evidence of any fraud having taken place. The defamation case was won against Fox News, which was fined $787 million in damages for reporting false information to the public about the 2020 election process and results.
From The Associated Press (AP): https://apnews.com/article/fox-news-dominion-lawsuit-trial-trump-2020-0ac71f75acfacc52ea80b3e747fb0afe
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Conclusions:
After multiple specific claims of voter/election fraud were investigated by bipartisan officials in various states in question, no evidence has been found that there was any sort of widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
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UPDATE: 2024 Presidential Election
Former President Donald Trump won the 2024 Presidential Election.
The opposing Democratic party conceded peacefully. No allegations of fraud were made by the Democratic party. The current Democratic administration has begun preparations for a peaceful transfer of power.
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