A sizable number of Republicans who made false claims about the 2020 election results are running for office again in 2024 — but this time around, the 17 candidates are toning down their election denial rhetoric and not making it the center of their campaign messages the way they did in previous elections.
Now they're focusing on themes like "election security" and "election integrity."
“That message didn’t work,” veteran Republican strategist Alex Conant told NBC News about the big steal claims. “Republicans want to win in 2024. They know they’re not going to win in 2020 — there’s nothing we can do now to change what happened.”
“For a lot of Republican voters, they want to make sure that their votes count, and are more interested in what candidates can do about election security than listening to them complaining about 2020 conspiracy theories,” he added.
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Others say the shift in messaging is simply to help voters forget the candidates' debunked claims.
“The election denial movement has damaged trust in our elections and has led to threats and harassment that election officials are dealing with every day,” said Joanna Lydgate, CEO of States United Action. “I think that’s a really important point to remember, in light of those candidates who may appear to have backed away from some of their representations in the past two election cycles.”
Many of the 17 candidates are running for offices in swing states that could be tied to the certification of election results.
Some analysts say the GOP is so deeply in bed with Trump that the toning down of election denial won't have much of an effect on voters.
Democratic strategist Jesse Ferguson agrees, saying Republicans still “seem pretty hauled in on Trump’s idea that the election was stolen.”
MAGA firebrand and former Arizona gubernatorial candidate turned Senate candidate Kari Lake has also been toning down claims of a stolen election. Lake deflected when asked in a new radio interview who, exactly, she is accusing of having stolen her previous election in 2022, The Arizona Republic reported on Tuesday.
Lake, a former Phoenix-area news anchor who became a firm supporter of former President Donald Trump, has become infamous since losing her election to Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs for refusing to concede the results and filing a long string of unsuccessful lawsuits to try to get the election result thrown out.
But pressed in her appearance on KTAR radio, she didn't want to explain any of this.
"The interview shifted to Lake’s ongoing efforts to overturn her loss in the 2022 gubernatorial race. Lake was asked who stole the election from her and how they did it. She noted that she wasn’t the one raising the issue, then conceded she lacked the details of the 'rigged' election she has widely discussed," reported Ronald Hansen.
"'I don’t want to sit and look backwards,' Lake said. 'These lawsuits are meant to make sure that going forward our elections are strong.' Pressed again on her allegation of theft, Lake said the elections 'are run very poorly.'"
