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Hillary Clinton says she didn't prepare concession speech because she was convinced she would win

'I really thought I was going to win' the former Secretary of State confesses

Emily Shugerman
New York
Friday 13 October 2017 22:18 BST
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Hillary Clinton speaks out about the election on BBC's The One Show
Hillary Clinton speaks out about the election on BBC's The One Show

Hillary Clinton didn't prepare a concession speech during the US presidential election because she was convinced she would not lose, the former Secretary of State has admitted.

“I had not prepared a concession piece because I really thought I was going to win,” Ms Clinton said on BBC’s The One Show. “So when it became clear I was going to lose the electoral college ... I had to come up with something to say.”

She added: “When it was over, I got into the car with my husband and I just felt like the plug was pulled. Every ounce of energy and adrenaline was just gone.”

But the former Secretary was not alone in her lack of preparation. Few people in American politics or media had predicted Ms Clinton’s loss – Politico even called it “the biggest upset in US history”.

In fact, Ms Clinton said even Donald Trump sounded shocked when she called him to concede the next day.

“He was as surprised as I was,” she said.

Ms Clinton appeared on The One Show to promote her recently released book, What Happened. The book details the 2016 presidential election and its aftermath – including moments like the one Ms Clinton described on Friday.

During the interview, Ms Clinton said the book was a story not just about the election, but also about resilience.

“Everybody has to bounce back from something,” she said. “...And anything that I could say that might give some hope and some courage to anyone else who is facing their own disappointments would be wonderful.”

Ms Clinton’s said her preferred coping mechanisms were sweatpants, chardonnay, and long walks in the woods. She also sung the praises of “alternate nostril breathing” – a relaxation tactic she discusses at length in the book.

Hillary Clinton: Trump is the most dangerous president the US has ever had

But Ms Clinton and the TV hosts also discussed more serious issues, like the lack of women in politics in the US.

“When you’re a woman who steps out and says, ‘I want to lead in our country,’ that raises a lot of questions,” said Ms Clinton, who dedicated several section of her book to the effects of sexism on women in power.

“We are behind in the United States, and I’m hoping – having gotten the nomination of one of our two major parties – that I've pushed that door open a lot more, so that hopefully we can see a woman president in my lifetime," she said.

Asked if she ever considered that Mr Trump might be the right man for the presidency, she responded simply: “No, I don’t think so.”

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