'That's What Demagogues Do': Sanders Warns Trump Will Prematurely Claim Victory

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders warned on the eve of Tuesday's presidential contest that no matter what the initial vote tallies show, Republican nominee Donald Trump will declare victory—just as he did four years ago—in an attempt to sow chaos and confusion as election workers tabulate the results of what's expected to be a razor-close race.

"Donald Trump, early on in the evening, will declare, 'Hey, I've won this election, and if there's any state that I lost, it's because of voter fraud,'" Sanders (I-Vt.), who has backed Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, predicted in a video message to the nation released on Monday.

"That's what demagogues do," the senator added, "and that's how you move a country toward an authoritarian form of society."

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Sanders' warning came after Trump and his GOP spent the months leading up to Election Day laying the groundwork to challenge the results of the presidential contest if it doesn't go their way, repeating baseless claims of voter fraud and preemptively suggesting a Trump loss is only possible if the contest is rigged.

"The only thing that can stop us is the cheating," the former president declared at a campaign rally in Arizona last week. "It's the only thing that can stop us."

One recent analysis estimated that Trump loyalists have majority control of 15 county election boards in eight key swing states, a potential boon to far-right efforts to disrupt the vote-counting or certification process.

Anticipating premature victory claims from Trump, election observers are warning U.S. voters to be on the lookout for a "red mirage"—which refers to the misleading appearance of a significant Republican lead before mail-in ballots are counted. Around 75 million Americans cast ballots in the early voting period, according to state-level tallies.

Reuters reported last week that "Democrats are readying a rapid-fire response to flood social media and the airwaves with calls for calm and patience with vote-counting should Donald Trump try to prematurely claim election victory."

Former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich warned in a blog post Tuesday that Trump is likely to exploit a potential "red mirage" just as he did in 2020.

"Trump's nonsense claim that the votes counted earlier in the night were more legitimate than those counted later became the underpinning of his entire Big Lie, culminating in the January 6 attack on the Capitol," Reich wrote. "It looks as if the 2024 election will be close. Early tonight, Trump is likely to appear to be ahead and again use that early lead to falsely claim victory. Mirages can be confusing, but if you know what they are, you won't be fooled by them. Please help spread the word about the red mirage so people know what to expect tonight."

The Washington Post noted Tuesday that "finding out who won the presidency may take days," observing that "election officials in key swing states are urging Americans to be patient as they tally results, a process that varies from state to state because each has different vote-counting laws."

"Polls show an extremely tight presidential race, and the closer the results are, the longer it will take to know the outcome," the newspaper reported. "The swing states that took the longest then could again be slow this year: Pennsylvania, Arizona and Nevada. If the race is close, other states could join the list."