DeSantis on election fraud theories: 'Did not prove to be true'

Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday rejected former President Donald Trump's claims that the 2020 presidential election was "stolen" via mass election fraud.

Speaking at a campaign event in Iowa, DeSantis stated that the election fraud theory appeared to hold no water, though he still acknowledged concerns with the process.

"All those theories that were put out did not prove to be true," he said, according to The Hill. "“It was not an election that was conducted the way I think that we want to, but that’s different than saying [Nicolas] Maduro stole votes or something like that. Those theories, you know, proved to be unsubstantiated."

His remarks come one day after former President Donald Trump was arraigned on federal charges related to his efforts to challenge the results of the election. Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges and has since reiterated his position that the charges are part of a witch hunt designed to derail his return to the White House.

"This is a persecution of a political opponent," Trump said. "This was never supposed to happen in America... I'm leading Biden by a lot... you can't beat him you persecute or you prosecute him."

DeSantis, for his part, stands as the second place candidate in the Republican primary, behind Trump, though he trails by 35.5% in the RealClearPolitics polling average.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.