Politician · event

Hillary Clinton on 2016 Election

Questions 2016 Legitimacy (strong)

Hillary Clinton maintains the position that the 2016 presidential election was "not on the level" and that the full details of what occurred are still not known. She points to the fact that she won the popular vote by over three million votes, yet lost the election, as evidence that "something's not right here," which created a deep sense of unease.

Clinton often attributes her loss to a combination of factors, including voter suppression efforts in key states like Wisconsin and North Carolina, and the pervasive influence of sexism and misogyny in society. She also frequently cites the impact of the Comey letter in the final days of the campaign, which she believes severely damaged her general election prospects by shifting momentum late in the race.

Furthermore, Hillary Clinton has repeatedly cited external interference, specifically mentioning Russian weaponization of information and the leaking of John Podesta's emails via WikiLeaks, as contributing factors that were used to create negative narratives about her. She also criticized Donald Trump's temperament and unfitness for office both before and after the election, noting that her pre-election warnings proved to be understated.

In the immediate aftermath, Hillary Clinton conceded the race on November 9, 2016, to Donald Trump, following his victory in the Electoral College. During her campaign, she was the Democratic Party's candidate and became the first woman to win a presidential nomination by a major U.S. political party.

Context

The 2016 U.S. Presidential Election is a critical event in Hillary Clinton's political career as it marked her second unsuccessful bid for the presidency, following her 2008 primary loss. She entered the general election as the Democratic Party's nominee and the first woman to secure a major party's nomination.

Her position on the election is central to her current political commentary, as she often uses the outcome to contextualize contemporary political dynamics and criticize her successor, Donald Trump. Her continued questioning of the election's fairness is a significant aspect of her public statements regarding the state of American democracy.

Timeline

April 12, 2015 Hillary Clinton formally launched her candidacy for the presidency as the Democratic nominee.
July 26, 2016 Clinton officially received the nomination of the Democratic Party at the Democratic National Convention, becoming the first woman to do so for a major U.S. party.
November 8, 2016 Election Day where the Republican ticket of Donald Trump and Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticket.
November 9, 2016 Hillary Clinton conceded the presidential race to Donald Trump.
September 10, 2017 Clinton attributed aspects of her loss to voter suppression, sexism, the Comey letter, Russian information warfare, and WikiLeaks email disclosures.
October 1, 2020 Clinton reiterated her belief that the 2016 election was 'not on the level' and that history would reveal more details about issues like Russian interference.

Key Quotes

We still don't know what really happened.

The Atlantic's The Ticket podcast interview October 1, 2020 — Stating her view that the 2016 election details are still unclear.

There was a widespread understanding that this election [in 2016] was not on the level.

The Atlantic's The Ticket podcast interview October 1, 2020 — Expressing her long-held conviction about the election's fairness.

I think my general election prospects were so badly damaged because of that [Comey letter] that even though I was starting to come back it was not enough time to overcome it.

CBS Sunday Morning interview September 10, 2017 — Discussing the impact of the FBI Director's letter near the election.

Criticism

Analysts (like Nate Silver) September 1, 2017

While some analysts she respects, like Nate Silver, reportedly concluded that without the Comey letter, she would have won, suggesting the loss was a close result rather than fundamentally illegitimate.