Updated 11 November 2020 at 12:14 IST
US postal worker retracts allegations of ballot tampering, says Oversight Committee
A worker with the USPS, whose allegations of ballot tampering have been the basis of Republicans’ calls for investigations, has retracted his statement.
A worker with the United States Postal Service (USPS), whose allegations of ballot tampering have been the basis of Republicans’ calls for investigations, has retracted his statement, according to the House Oversight Committee. Last week, Richard Hopkins had told a right-wing media website that he had witnessed his supervisor talking about backdating ballots and was later contacted by USPS investigations. However, the investigators have now informed that Hopkins had recanted his allegations and would not explain why he had signed the false affidavit.
Investigations into voter fraud approved
According to the Washington Post, Hopkins admitted to fabricating his claims, citing three officials. Senior Republican Senator Lindsey Graham had also seized on the postal worker’s testimony when the 32-year-old asked that Justice Department to investigate election fraud allegations, and Attorney general William Barr opened that investigation. On Tuesday, Barr had also sent a memo to prosecutors approving federal investigations into voter fraud, despite a lack of evidence that such fraud was taking place.
According to local US media reports, legal filings in Pennsylvania have referred to very few cases of suspected fraud. US President Donald Trump and his campaign have filed numerous lawsuits in key swing states and asked courts to issue injunctions to stop the certification of the results. On Saturday, the Associated Press had called Joe Biden as the winner with a clear majority of 290 electoral votes as opposed to 214 for the Republican leader.
Biden was named the winner after he took the key battleground state of Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, just a handful of Senate Republicans have so far congratulated Biden on his victory. Republicans in the United States appear to be divided on the projected win by President-elect Joe Biden even as President Donald Trump refused to accept defeat and claimed widespread voter fraud. While some Grand Old Party (GOP) lawmakers were more accepting of Biden's lead on Sunday, others supported Trump's narrative of voter fraud, calling for legal challenges by his campaign.
(Image: Rep/AP)
Published By : Bhavya Sukheja
Published On: 11 November 2020 at 12:16 IST