Florida Sen. Marco Rubio (R) refused to say that he would accept the results of the 2024 presidential election, instead blaming Democrats for sowing doubts about the election.
The comments from Rubio, who is among those being seen as a potential running mate for former President Donald Trump, came while he appeared on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Sunday.
“I think you’re asking the wrong person. The Democrats are the ones that have opposed every Republican victory since 2000. Every single one,” Rubio said when asked, adding, “And you have Democrats now saying they won’t certify 2024 because Trump is an insurrectionist and ineligible to hold office. So you need to ask them.”
However, the show’s moderator did push back against Rubio’s claim, saying no Democratic presidential candidate has refused to concede the election.
The remarks from Rubio show a shift from his actions in 2020 when he voted to certify the presidential election for then-President-elect Joe Biden.
“Democracy is held together by people’s confidence in the election and their willingness to abide by its results,” Rubio said at the time.
As for Trump, in May, he told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he would only accept the results of the election in Wisconsin “if everything’s honest.”
The trend of not openly agreeing to accept the election results seems to be spreading to Trump’s allies, as earlier this month, another potential Trump VP, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), also avoided committing to accepting the election results while on “Meet the Press.”
“At the end of the day, the 47th president of the United States will be President Donald Trump,” Scott said.
As for who could earn the right to be Trump’s VP, Rubio said that he hasn’t spoken to the president about it but that it would be an honor.
“I think anyone who’s offered that job to serve this country in the second highest office — assuming everything else in your life makes sense at that moment — if you’re interested in serving the country, it’s an incredible place to serve,” Rubio said.