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Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump shocked political pundits by refusing to say he would accept the results of the Nov. 8 election no matter the result.
Instead, when asked by debate moderator Chris Wallace, Trump said he would keep “you in suspense” while he considered whether to accept the results.
The full transcript of the exchange is below:
MODERATOR CHRIS WALLACE: Sir, there is a tradition in this country, in fact one of the primes of this country is the peaceful transition of power. And that no matter how hard fought a campaign is, that at the end of the campaign, that the loser concedes to the winner. Not saying that you're necessarily going to be the loser or the winner. But that the loser concedes to the winner, and that the country comes together in part for the good of the country. Are you saying you're not prepared now to commit to that principle?
TRUMP: What I'm saying is I'll tell you at the time. I'll keep you in suspense, okay?
CLINTON: Let me respond to that, because that's horrifying.
Every time Donald thinks things are not going in his direction, he claims whatever it is is rigged against him.
Trump’s response split sharply from earlier comments from Trump’s running mate, Mike Pence, and his daughter, Ivanka Trump, who said the Trump campaign would accept the results of the election, even if they lose.
“We will absolutely accept the result of the election,” Pence said in an interview on NBC this past Sunday. “Look, the American people will speak in an election that will culminate on November the 8th. But the American people are tired of the obvious bias in the national media.”
“He’ll either win or he won’t win, and I believe he’ll accept the outcome either way,” Ivanka Trump said earlier Wednesday in an interview with Time Magazine.
After the debate, however, Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said on CNN she would tell Trump to accept the results of the election, “absent evidence of widespread abuse and irregularities.”
Meanwhile, Trump’s response was slammed by politicians on both sides of the aisle. Jeff Flake, a Republican senator from Arizona, said Trump’s comment was “beyond the pale,” while Democractic senator Cory Booker characterized it as “profoundly dangerous.” One of Trump’s primary rivals, South Carolina Republican senator Lindsey Graham, said Trump was doing America a “great disservice” by undermining the electoral process.
Meanwhile, an NBC reporter asked RNC communications director Sean Spicer about the comment.