US election: Michigan Republicans seek to delay vote certification

Mr Trump took the unusual step of meeting members of the Michigan state legislature's Republican leadership at the White House on Friday, reportedly putting pressure on them to disregard Mr Biden's win in the state.The White House said earlier it was "not an advocacy meeting" and simply part of the president's routine meetings with state lawmakers across the country, although he has conducted very few engagements since the election.Afterwards two Republican legislators pledged to follow "normal process" in validating the vote, saying they haven't seen any evidence that would change the result.Yet, in the letter on Saturday, the Michigan Republican Party called for the full audit of votes in Wayne County, where the majority-black city of Detroit heavily leans Democrat. While the odds of this happening are along the lines of the earth being hit by a giant meteor or someone getting struck by lightning while winning the lottery, having victory snatched away at this point would be such a cataclysmic political event that the remote prospect of such a possibility is enough to give Democrats cold sweats.Read more on Trump's optionsAfter a string of court defeats in his efforts to challenge the election results, Mr Trump's team is hoping to convince legislatures controlled by his fellow Republicans in key states to ignore the outcome and declare Mr Trump the victor, according to multiple US media outlets.Mr Trump has also expressed interest in inviting legislators from Pennsylvania, another battleground won by Mr Biden, to the White House, a senior campaign official confirmed to the BBC's US partner, CBS News.But he has no such meetings currently listed on his public schedule for this weekend, and counties in the Rust Belt state, along with Michigan, are due to certify their vote totals on Monday. It is seen as highly unlikely that the president's team would be able to flip Michigan and Pennsylvania..css-gw44ni-IconContainer{display:inline-block;height:1em;width:1em;vertical-align:-0.125em;margin-right:0.25em;}play.css-1hlxxic-PromoLink:link{color:inherit;}.css-1hlxxic-PromoLink:visited{color:#696969;}.css-1hlxxic-PromoLink:link,.css-1hlxxic-PromoLink:visited{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}.css-1hlxxic-PromoLink:link:hover,.css-1hlxxic-PromoLink:visited:hover,.css-1hlxxic-PromoLink:link:focus,.css-1hlxxic-PromoLink:visited:focus{color:#B80000;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;}.css-1hlxxic-PromoLink:link::after,.css-1hlxxic-PromoLink:visited::after{content:'';position:absolute;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;left:0;z-index:2;}US election: Trump falsely claims victory - 'The campaign, which I won, by the way'US election 2020: Fact-checking Trump team's main fraud claimsAttention-loving Trump disappears in final days of termUS election results: Can Trump overturn the outcome?playUS election: Trump denial 'incredible irresponsibility' - BidenMelania Trump's hometown in Slovenia hopes its fame will lastTrump party in new bid to stop Biden win confirmationThe Republican Party requests a two-week adjournment in Michigan, citing unsubstantiated fraud claims.Californian Covid curfew to begin as cases surgeJournalist gatecrashes EU defence video conferenceCan Trump overturn the election result?My mother, the world’s first woman prime minister.