US election: Donald Trump prematurely declares 'we did win this election'

Photo / AP

President Donald Trump has declared victory in the US election while numerous states remain too close to call.

The President strode to the podium at the White House after 2am (US time) to address a room of supporters. He called the election a fraud and announced he would seek a Supreme Court ruling to stop the additional counting of votes.

"I want to thank the American people for their tremendous support. Millions and millions of people voted for us today.

"A very sad group of people is trying to disenfranchise that group of people and we will not stand for it," the President said.

Reaction to the comments was swift, with Piers Morgan calling it "an unprecedented assault on American democracy".

Every vote must be counted. Trump’s strategy has always been.

1) Declare victory on partial results.
2) Sue to stop a full count.
3) Accuse Democrats of fraud.
4) Foment violence & division.
5) Rely on the Supreme Court to rule in his favor.

Count the votes.

— Robert Reich (@RBReich) November 4, 2020

President Trump has just launched an unprecedented assault on American democracy, demanding millions of Americans are denied their votes, & it’s an absolute disgrace.

— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) November 4, 2020

During his often rambling speech, Trump told supporters that he was on track to secure reelection before the counting of votes stopped "all of a sudden".

"We were getting ready for a big celebration. We were winning everything and all of a sudden it was called off. We were all set to get outside and celebrate something so beautiful, so good, such a success.

"This is a fraud on the American public. This is an embarrassment to our country. We were getting ready to win this election. Frankly, we did win this election. So our goal now is to ensure the integrity, for the good of the nation, we want the law to be used in a proper manner.

No, Trump has not already won the election, and it is deeply irresponsible for him to say he has.

— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) November 4, 2020

That was one of the most dishonest and despotic speeches ever given by a president of the United States.

— Justin Amash (@justinamash) November 4, 2020

"So we'll be going to the Supreme Court. We want all voting to stop. We don't want them to find any ballots at 4am in the morning and add them to the list. It's a very sad moment. To me, this is a very sad moment.

"As far as I'm concerned, we already have won it," Trump said.

The first vote to be counted doesn't matter any more than the last one. They all count. And Trump can't declare himself the winner before they're all counted.

— Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) November 4, 2020

Donald Trump’s premature claims of victory are illegitimate, dangerous, and authoritarian.

Count the votes. Respect the results.

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) November 4, 2020

Trump argued he was too far ahead in the electoral count to be defeated.

"We were winning everything and all of a sudden it was all called off," he said.

"This is a record. There's never been anything like it. We won states we weren't expected to win. Florida — we won it by a lot. We won the great state of Ohio. We won Texas by 700,000 votes.

America should never be allowed to lecture the world again about free and fair elections or democratic norms of conduct after what it has allowed to transpire in its own election

— Ayman Mohyeldin (@AymanM) November 4, 2020

Lost in the discussion about Trump going full autocrat is the reality that he still has a very good shot of winning the election legitimately even if all the votes are counted. More Americans than in 2016 willingly signed up for the worst leadership imaginable.

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 4, 2020

"It's also clear that we have won Georgia. We're up by 117,000 votes with only 7 per cent left. They can't catch us. Likewise, we've clearly won North Carolina.

What Trump said just now were the words of a dictator. They were also utterly unsurprising, totally in character. And close to half of Americans voted for him knowing exactly what he is. That country is stuffed.

— Neale Jones (@nealejones) November 4, 2020

"We're winning Pennsylvania by a tremendous amount of votes. We're up 690,000 votes in Pennsylvania. These aren't even close."

Trump earlier has accused his rivals of trying to "steal" the election as his presidency hangs in the balance, which Twitter immediately flagged.

We are up BIG, but they are trying to STEAL the Election. We will never let them do it. Votes cannot be cast after the Polls are closed!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 4, 2020

Prior to Trump's address, Democratic challenger Joe Biden gave a speech to supporters in which he revealed his confidence in winning the election.

"Keep the faith, guys. We are going to win this. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Your patience is great," he said.

We feel good about where we are. We believe we are on track to win this election.

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) November 4, 2020