US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo has said President Donald Trump will have a smooth transition to a second term.
Trump, candidate of the Republican Party, was defeated by Joe Biden, a former vice-president and candidate of the Democratic Party in the 2020 presidential election.
But Trump has refused to concede, alleging fraud in the electoral process and asking for a recount.
When asked if the State Department was engaging with the Biden transition team, Pompeo said they are working to uncover facts that reflected the will of the people in the election.
“There will be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration.
“We’re counting votes, when the process is complete there’ll be electors selected, there’s a process the constitution lays it out pretty clearly.
“The world is watching what’s taking place here. We’re gonna count all the votes. When the process is complete, there will be electors selected. There’s a process; the Constitution lays it out pretty clearly.
“We want every one of those votes to be counted in the same way we have every expectation every vote here in the United States will be counted too. It is totally appropriate, the United States has an election system that is laid out deeply in our constitution, and we’re going to make sure that we get that right.
“The world should have every confidence that the transition necessary to make sure that the State Department is functional today, successful today, and successful with a president who’s in office on January 20th, a minute after noon, will also be successful,” he said.
But when another reporter asked if Trump’s refusal to concede was hurting the State Department’s messaging to other nations that elections should be conducted and finalised freely, fairly, and democratically
“That’s ridiculous, and you know it’s ridiculous, and you asked it because it’s ridiculous. You asked a question that is ridiculous.”
“The department cares deeply to make sure that elections around the world are safe and secure, and free and fair, and my officers risk their lives that that happens.
“We often encounter situations where it’s not clear about a particular election. We work to uncover facts, we work to do discovery, to learn whether in fact the outcome, the decision that was made reflected the will of the people,” Pompeo said.
Trump had also insisted that he was winning the election as counting is still ongoing in some states.
