Pence backs ‘fight for election integrity’ after reports of Trump fury at his lack of support

‘Stay in the fight,’ vice president urges young conservatives, saying election is not over

Mike Pence has reaffirmed his support for Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, even as news reports surfaced this week of the embattled president lashing out at his vice president for not fighting strongly enough for him to stay in power.

“Stay in the fight,” Mr Pence told a crowd of young Republicans in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday. “Stay in the fight for election integrity.”

The crowd, organised by the university campus conservative group Turning Points USA, erupted in applause and broke into a chant of “USA, USA, USA.”

Axios reported earlier on Tuesday that Mr Trump has been lashing out at his top advisers, including Mr Pence, who he believes are abandoning him as the reality of his departure from the White House closes in.

President-elect Joe Biden will be sworn into office on 20 January.

In the nearly four years since he entered the White House along with Mr Trump, Mr Pence has been the president’s most aggressively optimistic spokesman, never publicly contradicting him.

Despite the Axios report that Mr Trump has become bothered by a Lincoln Project ad claiming Mr Pence is “backing away” from the president’s rhetoric on the 2020 election results, the vice president once again took the president’s side when he appeared in public.

“As our election contest continues, I'll make you a promise: we're gonna keep fighting until every legal vote is counted,” Mr Pence said, a remark that does not comport with reality.

The votes have been counted. Every state has now certified its election results, and the Electoral College has voted for Mr Biden over Mr Trump 306-232. Congress is set to certify those results on 6 January.

According to the Axios report, Mr Trump has been furious with Mr Pence, who he believes is not fighting for the president to remain in power.

Mr Pence will preside over Congress’ 6 January vote to confirm the 2020 Electoral College results, putting the vice president in the odd position of ratifying Mr Biden’s victory over his own defiant boss.

Mr Pence is not the only one on the receiving end of Mr Trump’s wrath.

According to Axios, the outgoing president has increasingly turned against anyone who has not offered outright support for his election conspiracies and schemes, which most recently have included demands to confiscate voting machines and inquiries about whether he could invoke martial law to stay in power.

Several times throughout Mr Pence’s speech on Tuesday in Florida, he urged the conference’s attendees to keep supporting the president and his agenda, indicating he still backs Mr Trump’s widely discredited and unsubstantiated election fraud claims.

The crowd was ecstatic, breaking into enthusiastic — yet confusing — chants in response to portions of his remarks.

At various points, Mr Pence urged the crowd to support GOP Senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue in the Georgia Senate runoff elections slated for 5 January that will determine control of the chamber.

One of Ms Loeffler or Mr Perdue must win for Republicans to retain their Senate majority.

“Come January 5, we're gonna hold the line in the United States Senate by re-electing Senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue in Georgia,” Mr Pence said.

The crowd went wild.

"Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!" it chanted.

Senators serve six-year terms.