Newsmax anchor John Bachman referred to Joe Biden as the “president-elect” twice Monday, after the outlet had refrained from using the title for Biden.
Bachman gave Biden the “president-elect” title twice during “John Bachman Now” after Newsmax strayed from most other news organizations in declining to use the title despite Biden widely being considered the president-elect since Nov. 7.
“The Electoral College votes are being cast today,” Bachman said during his show. “Here’s video of four states — New York, New Hampshire, Arizona and Illinois — all certifying the election for President-elect Joe Biden.”
The anchor continued by detailing the upcoming Senate runoff races in Georgia that will determine which party controls the upper chamber, adding that if Democrats secure leadership, investigations into Biden’s son Hunter Biden are unlikely.
“But what about Hunter Biden’s role in all of this? And will anyone ask some serious questions about the former vice president and future president-elect,” Bachman said before opening up discussion to a panel.
When asked about Bachman’s remarks, a Newsmax spokesperson cited a piece published Sunday that detailed the organization’s current outlook.
“Newsmax and many other critics of the election results will accept the declaration of the Electoral College of the new president-elect,” it said. “Still, Newsmax plans to continue its coverage of Trump’s challenges to the results and any new evidence of voting irregularities.”
Biden was widely recognized as the president-elect by most news outlets after he was projected to win Pennsylvania and the entire race last month. But the conservative network released a statement at the time saying it would not label Biden the winner or president-elect.
“The election remains very close and President Donald Trump continues to contest results in several states,” the statement said. “All votes should be counted. The media should not make the determination of the winner under these circumstances.”
Newsmax’s decision to delay calling the presidential election aligned with President Trump and his campaign’s efforts to contest the vote in several battleground states. Trump and his allies alleged widespread voter fraud but did not provide evidence to back up the challenges in court, leading to a lengthy series of legal losses.
The Supreme Court dismissed Texas’s case to overturn Biden’s win last week.