A girl poses for photos with Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump posters at Hofstra University in New York, the United States on Sept. 26, 2016. (Xinhua Photo)
WASHINGTON, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- As the 2016 U.S. election was heading into the homestretch, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump clashed with Democrats and his own party on whether the election was rigged.
The latest barrage from the bombastic and volatile New York billionaire developer that the election was rigged also raised concerns about whether he would accept defeat or question legality of a Clinton presidency.
"The election is absolutely being rigged by the dishonest and distorted media pushing Crooked Hillary - but also at many polling places - SAD," Trump tweeted late Sunday.
While he had brought up the possibility of a rigged election in the past, he stepped up the accusation recently after about a dozen women accused him of past sexual assaults, which the Trump campaign denied.
Indiana Governor Mike Pence, Trump's running mate, meanwhile joined Trump in highlighting the idea that the election was being rigged against the GOP ticket. But in a speech on Sunday, Pence said he and Trump would "absolutely" accept the results of the election.
Trump's claim of a rigged election was met with immediate rejection from the campaign of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and the White House.
Calling Trump's claim of a rigged election a tactic of desperation, the Clinton campaign over the last weekend issued a statement expressing confidence of the fairness of the election.
"Participation in the system - and particularly voting- should be encouraged, not dismissed or undermined because a candidate is afraid he's going to lose," said the statement. "This election will have record turnout, because voters see through Donald Trump's shameful attempts to undermine an election weeks before it happens."
Meanwhile, House Speaker Paul Ryan, the highest-ranking GOP official, also rejected Trump's claims of a rigged election, saying that he was "fully confident the states will carry out this election with integrity."
