Donald Trump will honor the results of next month’s election if Hillary Clinton wins, despite his controversial claims that the system is "rigged" against him, Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence said Sunday.
"We’ll respect the outcome of this election," Pence on CBS’ “Face the Nation” "Donald Trump said in the first debate that we’ll respect the will of the American people in this election. The peaceful transfer of power is a hallmark of American history."
Trump is isn’t railing against the electoral system, Pence insisted Sunday. Instead, he’s complaining about a national media that the Republican presidential ticket claims is slanted toward Clinton.
"The American people are getting awfully tired of this two-on-one fight with many of you in the national media doing half of Hillary Clinton’s work for her every day," Pence said.
But Trump has blasted the electoral system throughout the campaign – from how delegates were awarded in the Republican primaries to insinuating that there will be voter fraud in minority communities on Election Day.
Earlier this month, he called for poll watchers in Pennsylvania telling attendees at a rally in mostly-white Manheim, Pa., to "Go and vote and then go check out areas because a lot of bad things happen, and we don't want to lose for that reason."
Trump’s rhetoric has raised concerns among Republican Party leaders, including House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis.
“Our democracy relies on confidence in election results, and the speaker is fully confident the states will carry out this election with integrity,” AshLee Strong, Ryan’s press secretary, said in an email to BuzzFeed News when asked about Trump’s claims.
William Douglas: 202-383-6026, @williamgdouglas