Republican vice-presidential nominee Senator JD Vance has been addressing repeated inquiries about his stance on the 2020 election outcome concerning former President Donald Trump. During a campaign event in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday, Vance provided a direct response, stating, “no,” to whether he believes Trump lost the election.
His remarks followed a question from a reporter asking what message his previous avoidance of a direct answer about Trump’s 2020 loss conveyed to independent voters. Vance reiterated, “I’ve answered this question directly a million times,” and expressed his concerns about the 2020 election’s integrity, stating that he would not describe it as a loss for Trump.
Throughout his campaign, Vance has often shifted discussions about Trump’s 2020 loss towards broader critiques of censorship during that election year. In a previous vice-presidential debate with Democratic opponent Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Vance emphasized a focus on the future when questioned about Trump’s defeat, which prompted Walz to label the reply as a “damning non-answer.”
In an interview with The New York Times published last weekend, Vance faced multiple inquiries about the 2020 election results. Instead of a direct yes or no response, he criticized social media companies for censoring content about Hunter Biden’s laptop, suggesting it affected the election’s outcome by costing Trump millions of votes.
The campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris quickly criticized Vance’s comments made in Williamsport. The campaign’s statement accused Vance of denying the 2020 election results and claimed that Trump selected Vance for his unwavering loyalty.
Addressing the matter again on Wednesday during a campaign stop in North Carolina, Vance acknowledged the diverse opinions surrounding the past election. He encouraged open disagreement on various views, asserting a shared objective among Americans to remove Vice President Kamala Harris from office to improve the quality of life in the United States.
