Trump campaign issues statement ahead of recount

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - As election officials in Dane Co. and Milwaukee Co. gather Friday morning to begin their recount of the presidential election, the campaign for President Donald Trump issued a new statement about the process.

Like previous statements from the president’s camp, this latest one does not allege any inconsistencies with the actual vote counts. There has been no indication from the campaign so far that it expects a recount to change anything - unless votes are thrown out because of what it claims are illegal activities by the state’s Elections Commission.

“They have disenfranchised voters and undermined the integrity of this election. We continue to be confident that when all of the legal ballots are counted and illegal ballots are not counted, President Trump will be proven the winner,” the campaign alleges.

WEC Administrator Meagan Wolfe has consistently denied any impropriety by the commission and repeatedly pointed to statutes that she claims support its rulings. She has said that her office has looked at every allegation and found nothing that suggests “systemic or widespread election issues.”

Despite alleging the Wisconsin Elections Commission provide “unlawful advice,” which would subsequently apply to all Wisconsin precincts, the Trump campaign has only requested recounts in the state’s two most Democratic counties.

“By staging a last minute attempt to change the rules, and by providing unlawful advice before then, the Wisconsin Elections Commission has repeatedly failed to follow the law,” the campaign wrote. (full statement below)

Official recount procedures begin in Wisconsin today, following a petition from President Donald J. Trump’s campaign. The campaign released the following statement from Jim Troupis, Wisconsin counsel to the campaign:

“Our democracy depends on fair and impartial elections that fully adhere to the Constitution and state statute. By staging a last minute attempt to change the rules, and by providing unlawful advice before then, the Wisconsin Elections Commission has repeatedly failed to follow the law. They have disenfranchised voters and undermined the integrity of this election. We continue to be confident that when all of the legal ballots are counted and illegal ballots are not counted, President Trump will be proven the winner.”

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