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US President Donald Trump, accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, speaks on the first results of the 2020 US Presidential elections in the East Room of the White House in Washington, United States, on 4 November 2020. REUTERS / Carlos Barria
BEIJING – Chinese social media users viewed US Election Day with bewilderment and mockery, as President Donald Trump complained of “great fraud in our nation” and falsely claimed victory before millions were counted of votes.
“Whether he wins or loses, his ultimate mission is to destroy the semblance of American democracy,” wrote a user of China’s Weibo platform, similar to Twitter, on Wednesday.
“Let Trump get re-elected and take America downhill,” wrote another, while a third compared his untimely declaration of victory to claiming the pot in a game of mahjong before the round is over.
China’s own leadership, governed by the Communist Party, is chosen through an opaque process behind closed doors.
Relations between China and the United States are at their worst in decades due to disputes ranging from technology and trade to Hong Kong and the coronavirus, and the Trump administration has unleashed a barrage of sanctions against Beijing.
Chinese state media frequently draw attention to negative news in the United States, and before Tuesday’s vote they showed images of stores that had been bricked up in anticipation of election-related violence.
“This kind of malaise is usually (a) complication of elections in poor countries, but people are concerned that it could show up in the United States. America is in degradation, ”Hu Xijin, editor of the Global Times, a nationalist tabloid published by the Communist Party’s People’s Daily, tweeted.
He later scoffed at pre-election polls that had predicted a stronger performance from rival Joe Biden.
A popular meme circulating online featured an electoral map in the shape of China, colored red to show that Trump had 270 electoral votes. Many of those who shared the image believe that a Trump victory would spell chaos for the United States, to the benefit of China.
Beijing has not expressed any preference in the race.
“The American elections are an internal matter. China has no position on this, “Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Wednesday.
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