Last updated on July 18th, 2023 at 12:23 pm
The state of Wisconsin has been the tightest during the last two presidential elections. In 2016, Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton there by around 24,000 votes. And in 2020, Joe Biden defeated Trump in the state by slightly under 21,000 votes.
Hillary Clinton asked for a recount in 2016 and things barely changed. Donald Trump, who has been much louder in his allegations of fraud, only sought recounts in two counties.
One of those areas was Milwaukee County, which has a sizable suburban and black population. But according to reports, that recount has backfired on Trump as Biden’s lead has only grown.
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The Washington Post’s Rosalind Helderman tweeted on Friday, “Milwaukee County concludes its recount of the presidential election — one of two counties where Trump sought a recount in Wisconsin. The results: Biden’s lead, currently at about 20,000 statewide, grew by 132 votes.”
Milwaukee County concludes its recount of the presidential election — one of two counties where Trump sought a recount in Wisconsin. The results: Biden's lead, currently at about 20,000 statewide, grew by 132 votes.
— Rosalind Helderman (@PostRoz) November 27, 2020
Trump has been consistent in his claims that he was cheated in the state of Wisconsin. He shared a misleading chart on Twitter last week and wrote, “Look at this in Wisconsin! A day AFTER the election, Biden receives a dump of 143,379 votes at 3:42AM, when they learned he was losing badly. This is unbelievable!”
Look at this in Wisconsin! A day AFTER the election, Biden receives a dump of 143,379 votes at 3:42AM, when they learned he was losing badly. This is unbelievable! pic.twitter.com/nhiLMmyHBn
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 19, 2020
Of course, political pundits had advised for weeks that the crush of Democratic leaning mail-in ballots would come in later than the election day totals. The phenomenon was referred to as “the red mirage.”
Todd Neikirk is a New Jersey based politics and technology writer. His work has been featured in psfk.com, foxsports.com and hillreporter.com. He enjoys sports, politics, comic books and spending time at the shore with his family.
