Kaine: ‘We have to be at the table’ for recounts
Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine says it is essential his party participate in all presidential election recounts nationwide.
“The Clinton team looked at the votes and looked at [a] recount — and [said] we’re not going to pursue it,” he told Fox 5 in Washington on Thursday.
{mosads}“But when [Green Party presidential nominee] Jill Stein, one of the third-party candidates, decided to do it — if there’s going to be a recount we have to be at the table to make sure it’s done right, that it’s done fairly,” the Virginia senator added.
“I do think people are entitled to know that the results are results that they can trust and that they can count on. So if there’s a recount, we have to be at the table, and we are.”
Kaine also said he believes Hillary Clinton’s gender made for an uphill battle against Donald Trump, who is now the president-elect.
“I always felt like Hillary was the underdog, frankly, because she’s trying to be a woman president — and we never had one,” he said. “That cannot be undersold. It’s very, very difficult to do.
“In Congress right now — just to give an example — [it’s] 19 percent women,” Kaine added. “That ranks 75th in the world — we’re behind Iraq, we’re behind Afghanistan.
“We’ve made it hard for women to get elected to federal office. And that was a headwind she was running against.”
Clinton’s campaign is seeking volunteers to help with recounts in two of three states that are undertaking recounts.
Stein on Wednesday formally filed for a recount in Michigan after initiating similar efforts in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Trump last month won all three states, which typically voted Democrat in recent elections prior to 2016.