Donald Trump confirms he'll accept the election results — if he wins

(Image credit: Screenshot/Twitter/ABC News)

Donald Trump will "totally accept" the results of the presidential election — assuming he wins, that is.

To date, Trump has flatly refused to confirm he will concede the election if Hillary Clinton wins and has continued to stoke debunked concerns of widespread voter fraud. At the final presidential debate Wednesday, when asked point-blank if he would accept a peaceful transition of power, Trump said he'd keep Americans "in suspense, okay?" The New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, and many other major newspapers ran the quote as a banner headline, with The Associated Press declaring Trump is "threatening a fundamental pillar of American democracy."

Trump feigned Thursday morning as if he would clarify the whole scandal: "Ladies and gentlemen, I want to make a major announcement today," he began at a rally in Ohio. "I would like to promise and pledge to all my voters and supporters and to all of the people of the United States that I will totally accept the results of this great and historic presidential election ... if I win."

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Trump is clearly pleased with his clever line — and maybe he'd have a right to be, if what he was saying wasn't so terrifying.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.