Mike Pence says Donald Trump 'will absolutely accept' election result even as candidate claims system is rigged

Donald Trump’s running mate has said they will “absolutely accept” the result of the election - despite the Republican candidate's claims that it is rigged against them.

Mr Trump has spent much of the last week saying that the media was conspiring with his rival, Hillary Clinton, to undermine his chances. He made the claims at a series of rallies as he sought to deny and deflect allegations that he sexually assaulted a number of women.

The accusations that the contest is fixed has added to concerns about the mood of the race as it enters its final three weeks. The contest has already become ugly and bitter, and many observers fear such rhetoric will make the job of the incoming president even more difficult, whoever is elected.

On Sunday, Mike Pence, Mr Trump’s running mate, repeated the claim that the media was biased against them. He gave the undertaking to accept the outcome even as Mr Trump continued to claim on Twitter that all was not well.

“We’ll respect the outcome of this election,” he said, speaking on NBC’s Meet the Press. “Donald Trump said in the first debate that we’ll respect the will of the American people in this election. The peaceful transfer of power is a hallmark of American history.”

Asked if he believed the contest could be subject to widespread voter fraud or whether talking about a rigged election could “undermine our democracy,” Mr Pence said the media was favouring their rivals.

A new poll on Sunday suggested Hillary Clinton was leading Mr Trump by as many as 11 points.

“Look, the American people will speak in an election that will culminate on November the 8th. But the American people are tired of the obvious bias in the national media,” Mr Pence said. “That's where the sense of a rigged election goes here.”

He added: “One of the great traditions of America is the peaceful transfer of power. And elections always get pretty rough. But as Donald Trump said in that first debate, I’ll say to you again today: We’re going to accept the will of the American people.”

Hours after Mr Pence spoke, Mr Trump said that the race was being “rigged” against him at voting locations.

“The election is absolutely being rigged by the dishonest and distorted media pushing Crooked Hillary - but also at many polling places - SAD,” he said.