Lisa Nandy: Tory refusal to condemn Trump is “dangerous moment” for UK

Lisa Nandy has slammed the government after Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab refused to condemn Donald Trump’s premature declaration of victory and calls for votes to stop being counted in the US election.

Speaking on Politics Live this afternoon, the Shadow Foreign Secretary argued that by neglecting “to stand up for that principle of democracy” her Conservative counterpart had made this a “very dangerous moment for the UK”.

Nandy told viewers today: “It’s not for a candidate to declare when an election is over. The election is over when the votes are counted… I very much agree with Jeremy Hunt that this is a very dangerous moment for democracy.

“Because the President didn’t just say that he thought that there might have been fraud committed, he actually called from the White House for the vote to stop being counted. Many of those votes that are coming in will take several days.

“Existing servicemen and women overseas – their ballots will take some time to arrive. Those votes must be counted and the American people must hear loud and clear from our government that we stand up for their right to free and fair elections…

“To see Dominic Raab, the Foreign Secretary, refuse to stand up for that principle of democracy was a very dangerous moment for the UK.”

The Shadow Foreign Secretary was reacting after her counterpart Dominic Raab repeatedly refused to comment on Trump’s unfounded claims that he had won the election and said it was “for the American people to decide” on the issue.

Raab told the BBC this morning that the government were “not going to get involved on the election night”. He even accused journalists of “engaging with the campaign rather than reporting on it” when asking about the President’s comments.

The US election is currently ongoing with several key swing states, such as Pennsylvania and Michigan, yet to declare a winner. Trump currently has 213 electoral college votes to Joe Biden’s 238 – 270 are needed to win.

But the President has already claimed victory in the election even though millions of people’s votes have yet to be counted and the results in these remaining swing states are anything but clear.

Speaking in the early hours this morning, Trump claimed: “We will win this and as far as I’m concerned, we already have won it.” He also said they would be going to the Supreme Court to ensure voting would stop.

His comments sparked fears that the President would attempt to discount mail-in and early ballots in key swing states that are still being processed as illegitimate – ballots that are expected to be more in favour of Democrat Joe Biden.

In an email to supporters shortly after Trump’s comments, Biden’s campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon said that it was a “naked effort to take away the democratic rights of American citizens”.

Nandy’s latest intervention follows criticism of the President’s statement this morning. In an interview with Good Morning Britain, she said that “everything is riding on the outcome of this election” as Trump has put democracy at stake.