Donald Trump used the final debate of an unprecedented US presidential campaign to sow doubt about the country’s democratic process, saying he might not accept the results of the election.
The former reality television star needed to secure an overwhelming victory in the debate to try and stop his continuing slide in the polls. But he failed to do so, repeatedly taking the bait of his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, who had perhaps her most assured performance of the three head-to-heads.
A New York Times average of the latest polls conducted before Wednesday night’s debate had Mr Trump losing nationally by at least six percentage points, a large margin by modern standards. Over the past week – and over the objections of his own campaign manager – the Republican candidate has repeatedly said that the election has been rigged against him, without offering any proof.
During the debate in Las Vegas he twice refused to say whether or not he would accept the results if he lost. “I will look at it at the time,” Mr Trump said. “I will keep you in suspense.”
Mrs Clinton responded by describing his position was “horrifying”.
“Let’s be clear about what he is saying and what that means. He is denigrating, he is talking down our democracy. And I am appalled that someone who is the nominee of one of our two major parties would take that position,” she said.
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READ: What happened in the first US presidential debate?
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She added that Mr Trump had claimed to be the victim of rigging several times in the past, including during the Republican primaries and even when his television show The Apprentice did not win an Emmy award.
“It’s funny, but it’s also really troubling,” Mrs Clinton said, after Mr Trump responded with “Should’ve gotten it”, referring to the Emmy, and the audience laughed.
No investigation has ever uncovered significant voter fraud in the United States, and Mr Trump’s insinuations have raised fears of potential intimidation of voters by his supporters.
At several points, the Democratic candidate baited Mr Trump into unscripted outbursts that seemed to undermine any attempt for him to appeal to voters beyond his sizeable but insufficient base of working-class white voters.
While responding to a question on her economic policies, Mrs Clinton said she would raise taxes on the wealthy and that Mr Trump would have to pay more social security tax, “assuming he can’t figure out how to get out of it” – a reference to the billionaire tycoon’s own acknowledgement that he used a loophole to avoid paying income tax.
Mr Trump interrupted Mrs Clinton, saying: “Such a nasty woman.” The line was one of the most discussed of the night by commentators, who agreed it would certainly not help him gain crucial ground among female voters.
tkhan@thenational.ae
