More than 30 former GOP members of Congress call on Trump to concede

Group call ‘unacceptable’ efforts by Trump to undermine legitimacy of election

A group of more than 30 former Republican members of Congress has called on Donald Trump to accept the results of the 2020 election and concede to president-elect Joe Biden.

The former lawmakers argue that the Trump campaign’s pursuit of legal challenges and allegations of fraud are undermining confidence in American democracy.

In a statement, the group says: “As former Republican members of Congress who swore an oath to the Constitution, we believe the statements by President Trump alleging fraud in the election are efforts to undermine the legitimacy of the election and are unacceptable.”

"Every vote should be counted and the final outcome accepted by the participants because public confidence in the outcome of our elections is a bedrock of our democracy," the statement continues. "Going forward it is our hope the nation will, regardless of party or persuasion, recognise that president-elect Joe Biden has won this election.”

The signatories of the statement, issued by Tom Coleman of Missouri, include a number of former house members that endorsed the Democrat candidate over Mr Trump. The

Among them are Pennsylvania’s Charlie Dent; Hawaii’s Charles Djou; and New York’s Susan Molinari.

Others are from swing states such as Florida, Ohio, and Arizona, and traditionally Republican strongholds Texas, South Carolina, and Nebraska.

A split has formed in the Republican Party of those that have congratulated Mr Biden on his electoral success, and those that are supporting the president in his efforts to challenge the legality of the election results.

To date, no evidence has been presented in support of the Trump campaign’s claims of electoral fraud, and no court cases have moved forward.

On Saturday, Mr Biden was named president-elect after the Associated Press and a number of other media organisations called the election in his favour, having accrued 290 electoral college votes.