‘Strong evidence of rigging’: Top computer scientists urge Clinton to challenge election results
- By Web Desk -
- Nov 24, 2016
WASHINGTON: The US Presidential elections are over with Republican Donald Trump emerging victorious, but for some – the game is still not over.
Top computer scientists in the country have urged Hillary Clinton, who already conceded Mr. Trump as triumphant, to challenge the election results in at least three states after they gathered “evidence” to suggest the election results were potentially manipulated, reports the Independent.
The group of activists, including voting rights lawyer John Bonifaz and J Alex Halderman, director of the University of Michigan’s center for computer security and society, believe their evidence shows that results in these three battleground states – which lost Ms Clinton the election on 8 November – might have been hacked.
As reported by New York Magazine, the group is not speaking on the record but is privately lobbying Clinton’s team to challenge the election results.
In Wisconsin, Ms Clinton received 7 per cent fewer votes in counties that depended on electronic-voting machines compared to countries that used optical scanners and paper ballots, and consequently Ms Clinton may have lost up to 30,000 votes. She lost Wisconsin by 27,000 votes.
Ms Clinton has made no indication she would challenge the results and the White House is intent on a smooth transition.
The deadline to file for a vote recount is between Friday and next Wednesday for the three states.
The vote in Michigan has still not been called as the results on 8 November were very close – and the 16 electoral votes in the state have not been proportioned to either Mr Trump or Ms Clinton.
Mr Trump has 290 electoral college votes, compared to Ms Clinton’s 232 votes. Michigan is likely to be given to the Republican side.
Heba Abedin, the sister of Ms Clinton’s top aide Huma Abedin, called on Facebook for people to phone the justice department and request an audit of the vote.
While according to the Huffington Post, Hillary Clinton’s popular vote lead surpassed 2 million ― or about 1.5 percent of the overall vote ― on Wednesday morning, with 64,225,863 ballots now counted in her favor, compared to 62,210,612 for Trump.
Republican President-elect Mr Trump won the election by winning a majority of the electoral college votes. As the votes still being counted, the Cook Political Report says Trump’s has his tally at 62.2 million and Clinton’s at 64.2 million.
It is the fifth time the winner of the popular vote has lost the election.
WATCH: Hillary Clinton concedes defeat in emotional speech