Washington: US president Donald Trump suggested delaying the US presidential elections which are going to be conducted in November 2020 saying that conducting elections during this pandemic situation can lead to fraud and inaccurate results.
Under the US constitution, Trump does not have the authority to postpone the election himself. Any delay would have to be approved by Congress. The president does not have direct power over the two houses of Congress.
The states in the US want easier voting due to public health concerns due to coronavirus.
Donald Trump tweeted “Universal Mail-in voting” would make November’s vote the “most inaccurate and fraudulent election in history” and a “great embarrassment to the USA”.
“The [Democrats] talk of foreign influence in voting, but they know that Mail-In Voting is an easy way for foreign countries to enter the race,” he said.
Donald Trump can’t delay November’s presidential election without Congress, partially controlled by the Democrats, first approving the decision.
According to NPR, any move by Congress to delay the election into 2021 would also require a constitutional amendment, US media quoted constitutional experts as saying. The amendment would be needed to change the dates for swearing in members of Congress and the new presidential administration.
Notably, even if Congress did agree to delay the election, Trump’s own term as president would still expire by 20 January 2021 under the constitution’s 20th Amendment with no exception unless he is reelected.
Now, Top Republicans have rejected President Donald Trump’s suggestion that November’s presidential election should be delayed over alleged fraud concerns.
With just over three months to go before the election, It is being states that Trump is trailing in the polls by double digits to Democrat Joe Biden. The 2020 United States presidential election is scheduled to be held on November 3, 2020. It will mark as the 59th quadrennial presidential election.