The US Supreme Court appears to have put the final nail in the coffin of Donald Trump’s attempts to undo his election loss, rejecting a lawsuit seeking to throw out results in four states.
The justices said the long-shot case, brought by Texas and backed by the president, did not have any legal standing.
Mr Trump and his allies have made repeated unfounded accusations of voter fraud and filed a flurry of unsuccessful lawsuits challenging the election results.
Donald Trump had hoped his appointed justices would rule in his favour
This latest lawsuit called into doubt the results in Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, which all voted for Democrat Joe Biden.
It was supported by 18 states and more than 100 Republican members of Congress.
The president had touted the Supreme Court challenge as his best hope of overturning his election loss, with conservatives holding a 6-3 majority in the court.
Mr Trump would have been hoping for his newly-appointed justice Amy Coney Barrett to vote in his favour after he controversially pushed through her confirmation just days before the election.
But Mrs Barrett and other justices appointed by the president – Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh – signed the court’s order rejecting the Texas lawsuit.
Two of the court’s conservatives, Justice Samuel Alito and Justice Clarence Thomas, said they would have allowed Texas to sue but would not have blocked the states from finalising their election results.
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‘They rigged our presidential election’
Mr Trump responded to the decision on Twitter, writing: “The Supreme Court really let us down. No Wisdom, No Courage!”
As things stand, the electoral college is expected to make Mr Biden’s victory official on Monday.
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‘The election is over. It wasn’t close. Trump lost.’
A spokesperson for Mr Biden said it was “no surprise” the court rejected “baseless attempts” to overturn the election results.
State election officials have said they have found no evidence of fraud, and lawyers for Mr Trump have failed to present evidence in court of the type of fraud he has alleged.
