Did Trump Try to Overturn the 2020 Election?

Typically, after a presidential election, the losing candidate concedes. Instead, Trump claimed the 2020 election was a fraud. He then took several actions that could have changed the outcome or prevented Joe Biden from taking office.

If you believe Trump was justified because the election was stolen, please read this page on election fraud first.

December 19, 2020: Trump tweeted an invitation to protesters, saying, “Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!” Many of the people later charged said they interpreted it as a call to action. [CREW]

December 30, 2020: Senator Josh Hawley announced his plan to object to the certification of the Electoral College vote. Congress was scheduled to certify Joe Biden’s win on January 6. [Fox News] [NPR]

January 2, 2021: Trump called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and tried to pressure him to reverse the state’s election results. Trump made many false claims during the phone call and told Raffensperger, “I only need 11,000 votes.” Raffensperger rejected the claims and refused to alter the results. Transcript: [CNN] Analysis: [Brennan Center] [Wikipedia]

January 5, 2021: Trump pressured Mike Pence to decertify the election results. Pence said he did not have the legal authority to do so. [PBS]

January 6, 2021: Congress was scheduled to ratify the 2020 election results that afternoon. That morning, Trump held a rally at the White House and told protesters, “If you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.” He also said, “I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.” Trump again called on Mike Pence to decertify the election. [NPR] Giuliani called for “trial by combat.” [CNN] There were mixed messages in the speech. [Transcript of rally speech on NPR]

After the rally, the crowd marched to the Capitol and broke through police barricades. They smashed windows and climbed into the halls of Congress. The House and Senate were in session trying to certify the election results, and members were forced to flee to safety. Outside, the crowd chanted that Vice President Mike Pence should be hanged. [NBC Video]

At one point during the attack, a crowd broke through a glass door protecting members of Congress. A guard, fearing for their safety, shot and killed Ashli Babbitt. [Wikipedia]

Trump had tried to attend the protest at the Capitol but was turned away by his Secret Service detail. He then watched the attack unfold on television. Several White House staff members urged Trump to call off his supporters, but he refused multiple times. [NPR] Eventually, Trump urged them to “go home with love and in peace,” but in the same message he repeated false claims that the election had been stolen. [CNBC]

By the end of the day, 140 officers had been injured, [Washington Post] and Officer Brian Sicknick died. [USCP]

January 7, 2021: Congress reconvened and voted to certify the 2020 election results, declaring Joe Biden the winner. [The Hill]

January 13, 2021: Trump was impeached for incitement of insurrection. The prosecution presented extensive evidence, including video footage. [Washington Post] The defense argued that Trump’s use of the word “fight” was just figurative language and protected by the First Amendment. The trial ended with a 57–43 vote for conviction, which fell short of the required two-thirds majority. [Wikipedia]

February 13, 2021: Mitch McConnell said Trump was “practically and morally responsible” for the events of January 6. [CNN]

One could imagine that Trump did not anticipate the level of violence that would follow the rally. He may have been angry with the protesters for going too far. But if that were the case, why did he later pardon more than 1,500 people who had been tried and convicted in connection with the Capitol riot? [jan-6.com]

Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, Mark Meadows, and others were indicted by a grand jury on charges of conspiring to manipulate the election outcome. [Indictment] The case was delayed because the prosecuting attorney, Fani Willis, had a romantic relationship with one of the other prosecutors. [PBS] Trump was elected before the trial could resume. The case was later dropped, not because of a lack of evidence, but because of the difficulty of convicting a sitting president. [Georgia Recorder]

Conclusion: There is strong evidence that Trump tried to overturn the 2020 election results by: