Romney on Georgia: Trump calling election rigged ‘not a great way to turn out your voters’

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) knocked President Trump on Wednesday, arguing that his persistent claims of a “rigged” presidential election in November cost the party votes in the two Georgia Senate races on Tuesday.

“Well, it turns out that telling the voters that the election is rigged is not a great way to turn out your voters,” Romney told reporters in the Capitol.

Romney’s comments come a day after the Georgia runoffs, with the results positioning Democrats to reclaim control of the Senate for the first time since 2014.

Trump has claimed for weeks that the November election was “rigged,” fueling concerns among Republicans that such remarks could negatively impact their ability to hold onto their slim Senate majority as they tried to fend off challenges from Democratic candidates Jon Ossoff and the Rev. Raphael Warnock in Georgia.

The apparent defeat for Republicans in Georgia comes as dozens of Republicans are preparing to challenge the outcome of the election results during a joint session of Congress on Wednesday.

At least 13 GOP senators are expected to support the objections to the electoral counts. Those objections will be defeated with bipartisan support in both chambers.

Romney, who was the only GOP senator to support one of the articles of impeachment against Trump last year, said the president has “disrespected the American voters, has dishonored the election system and has disgraced the office of the presidency.”

“I’m confident we’ll proceed as the constitution demands and tell our supporters the truth, whether or not they want to hear it,” Romney added.