Hillary Clinton, who has a popular vote lead of more than two million over President-elect Donald Trump, is being urged to demand recounts in key states due to concerns some polls may have been hacked.
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Prominent analysts, political experts and lawyers have been joining voices to push for recounts in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan along with an investigation into unseen factors at play.
A group of computer scientists and lawyers has been in contact with the Clinton camp over their concerns that results in the states may have been hacked or manipulated, New York magazine reports.
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The group presented findings showing that in Wisconsin, Clinton received seven per cent fewer votes in counties that used electronic voting machines, when compared to counties using optical scanning and paper ballots.
Another group is lobbying for a Congressional investigation into the possibility of Russian hacking during the election. A letter signed by more than 100 “concerned scholars” outlines their concerns.
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“We, the undersigned scholars who conduct research on cyber-security, national defense, authoritarian regimes, and free and fair elections, are deeply troubled by reports of hacking by foreign powers apparently intent on influencing our November 2016 elections,” the petition states.
The letter’s intention isn’t to change the outcome of the election, it states, but to prevent turning a “blind eye” to actions which undermine’s the country’s democratic institutions.
“The evidence made available in an investigation might show that foreign powers have played an important role.”
Clinton has blamed Russia for the Democratic National Convention (DNC) email hack that rocked her campaign, and the DNC, in July.
WATCH: Russian Foreign Minister on DNC hacking accusations: ‘I don’t want to use four-letter words’
Third-party candidate Jill Stein also demanded a recount of votes in the three states on Wednesday, citing the concerns over voting discrepancies.
A petition on Change.org, signed by more than 150,000 people, demands an audit of the 2016 results. The petition, started by the non-partisan Verified Voting Foundation, questions the role of Russian hacking in the election’s outcome, along with the possibility of computer issues or glitches.
“There’s a simple, relatively inexpensive way to find out: audit the electronic results against the paper ballots used by about 75 per cent of U.S. voters.”
If a vote recount in all three states were to swing in Clinton’s favour, it could change the outcome of the election.
Trump has 290 Electoral College votes to Clinton’s 232; a candidate needs 270 to win. The three states in question hold a total of 46 Electoral College votes; 30 of those have already been nabbed by Trump with Michigan’s 16 still to be determined.
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Should Michigan go to Clinton, and the the other two states’ votes moved from Trump to Clinton, her Electoral College vote count would bump her into presidential territory.
As it stands, Clinton has about 9,500 fewer votes than Trump in Michigan, 22,525 fewer votes than Trump in Wisconsin, and 69,444 fewer votes than Trump in Pennsylvania.
The deadline for recounts is coming up fast: Friday is the last day to request the votes be re-tallied in Wisconsin, for Pennsylvania it’s Monday and the deadline in Michigan is next Wednesday.
The inauguration of Trump, who repeated the claim throughout his campaign that the election was “rigged,” will take place Jan. 20.
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