How Jill Stein could influence the election results in Trump's favor

Hours before the US presidential election, Democrats warned voters that support for US Green Party candidate Jill Stein could result in the presidency inadvertently passing to Donald Trump. The ad, titled “Crucial,” shows Stein's face instantly transforming into Trump's, with the message: “A vote for Stein is truly a vote for Trump.” The video then shows Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania speaks and says, “Jill Stein? I like her very much. Do you know why? It takes 100 percent away from them.”

On October 28, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) allocated approximately $500,000 for a last-minute campaign in swing states and urged voters not to support third-party candidates, including Stein and independent Cornel West. Both Trump and Democrats expect Stein's presence on the ballot could siphon key votes from Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, potentially easing Trump's path to victory.

Jill Stein, who ran in 2012 and 2016, announced her 2024 candidacy on November 9, 2023 via a video on stopping the US veto in the UN Security Council. Their foreign policy program also includes the dissolution of NATO in favor of a “modern, integrative security framework”.

However, Green politicians across Europe expressed concern about Stein's influence on the election and released a statement on November 1 calling on her to step down and support Harris, Politico reported. “The race for the White House is too close for comfort,” said the statement from green parties in countries such as Germany, France and Italy, where Harris is described as the only viable candidate to block Trump's return.

Stein's campaign team rejected the call to resign. “We are committed to this campaign for the presidency and would never betray our legion of supporters…regardless of which anti-democratic person or group makes the proposal,” her team responded.

The first results trends are in, and the Republican candidate Donald Trump is in the lead with 178 votes and 52.1 percent of the vote. His rival Kamala Harris follows with 99 electoral votes and 46.7 percent of the popular vote. Green Party candidate Jill Stein received no votes, but received 229,300 votes, representing 0.4 percent of the popular vote.