Biden: Trump aims to delay November election to stay in power

US Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden says incumbent President Donald Trump will try to postpone the country's November election in an attempt to stay in power.

Biden said during an online fundraiser on Thursday that Trump would try to push back the general election in November because he thinks that is the "only way he can possibly win” the US election race.

“Mark my words I think he is gonna try to kick back the election somehow, come up with some rationale why it can’t be held,” Biden told supporters, adding that doing so is "the only way [Trump] thinks he can possibly win.”

The former vice president went on to say that he would also work to curb foreign interference in future elections, pointing to Russia’s alleged meddling in the 2016 general election.

“I guarantee, I promise you the Russians did interfere in our election and I guarantee you they are doing it again with two other major actors,” Biden said, without specifying who the other “major actors” were.

A new poll has shown that the presumptive US Democratic presidential nominee is leading Trump in three battleground states crucial to winning the US presidential election in November.

The Ipsos opinion poll conducted for Reuters in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin showed 45 percent of registered voters said they would support Biden, while 39 percent said they would support Trump.

Biden leads Trump in three US states crucial in 2020 election: Poll

Republican President Donald Trump trails Democrat Joe Biden among registered voters in three crucial states, according to a new poll

A separate Reuters/Ipsos poll found on Tuesday that Biden has an 8-point advantage over Trump nationally. However, neither Trump nor Biden appear to have much of an advantage when it comes to public perceptions of who is better prepared to combat the pandemic and the economic damage that has resulted.

The 73-year-old Trump has come under fire for turning his daily White House coronavirus briefings into campaign events, rallying his base and taking swipes at his critics such as Biden, who is sheltering at home.

"We have a sleepy guy in a basement of a house that the press is giving a free pass to, who doesn't want to do debates because of COVID," Trump said during the Thursday briefing.

The coronavirus has so far affected more than 878,000 people in the US and killed over 49,700 across the country.

Pelosi: Elections 'must' go on as scheduled

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Friday that Democrats "must" ensure that Trump doesn't delay the November elections.

"I know there's a danger and people are scared, but we must and we will," Pelosi said during an interview when asked about the possibility of there being an attempt to delay the November 3 elections if there is a resurgence of the coronavirus pandemic.

Pelosi said that she hoped that any attempt to move back the elections would be a bridge too far even for Republicans.

"[Trump] has done a lot to undermine who we are as America, but the fact is, we cannot allow him to do that to our democracy. That will not happen. And God-willing, maybe some Republicans might even stand up for our country, our Constitution, and our democracy, as well. I think they will," Pelosi said.

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