During a call broadcast by the "Washington Post", the American president asks Brad Raffensperger, the elected Republican in charge of the elections in the State of Georgia, to "find" the ballots necessary to cancel his defeat.
Donald Trump on Saturday asked a senior official to "find" the ballots necessary to reverse his defeat in the state of Georgia, in a staggering appeal broadcast by the
Washington Post
on Sunday
.
The American president, who still refuses to concede his defeat in the presidential election of November 3, tried, during a long telephone conversation, to rally Brad Raffensperger, the elected Republican in charge of the elections in this state, to his cause, by alternating pressures and coaxing.
"All I want is to find 11,780 ballots"
"There is no harm in saying that you have recalculated", he told him in particular, according to a recording of the discussion made without his knowledge and made public by the Washington Post, then other media.
"All I want is to find 11,780 ballots (...) because we have won this state", he justified, while the victory of Democrat Joe Biden in Georgia with about 12,000 votes of discrepancy was confirmed by a recount and audits.
Citing "rumors" of fraud, Donald Trump ruled, in a voice choked with emotion, "unjust that the election (him) was stolen".
"You know what they did and you don't talk about it: it's a crime, you can't let it happen, it's a big risk for you", he added, threatening .
Brad Raffensberger, who was accompanied by a state lawyer, did not give in.
"We think our numbers are good," he soberly retorted.
A shock wave in Washington
The broadcast of the recording, which the White House declined to comment, immediately sent shockwaves in Washington.
"Trump's contempt for democracy is exposed," said Democrat elected official Adam Schiff, deeming his pressures "potentially reprehensible".
Her colleague Debbie Wasserman Schultz denounced the act of a "desperate and corrupt president".
"It is overwhelming," for his part tweeted Republican elected official Adam Kinzinger, calling on members of his party not to follow the president in his challenge to the results.
"You can't do this with a clear conscience," he told them.
Joe Biden must be sworn in on January 20
Donald Trump embarked on a crusade in November to deny the victory of Joe Biden but suffered systematic failures before the courts and with local elected officials, including Republicans, who held out against his pressures.
The electoral college declared the victory to the Democrat on December 14 with 306 voters against 232 for the incumbent president, a score which must be certified Wednesday in Congress for the swearing-in of the 46th President of the United States on January 20.