First lady Michelle Obama on Thursday heaped praise on Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton while accusing Republican nominee Donald Trump of trying to suppress voters.

Speaking at a rally alongside Clinton in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Obama praised Clinton as the most prepared candidate for the presidency ever, adding, "Yes, more than Barack, more than Bill."

“If Hillary doesn’t win this election, that will be on us,” she continued, adding, “It will be because we did not stand with her. It will be because we did not vote for her. And that is exactly what her opponent is hoping will happen.”

Trump’s strategy, Obama claimed, is "to make this election so dirty and ugly that we don’t want any part of it.”

“So when you hear folks talking about a global conspiracy and saying that this election is rigged, understand that they are trying to get you to stay home,” she warned. “They are trying to convince you that your vote doesn’t matter, that the outcome has already been determined and you shouldn’t even bother making your voice heard. They are trying to take away your hope.”

Trump has repeatedly stated his belief that the election is rigged, comments which have been criticized, including by President Barack Obama, who called on Trump to “stop whining”.

His wife on Thursday rejected Trump’s claims that anything other than voters determine the outcome of U.S. elections.

“And just for the record, in this country, the United States of America, the voters decide our elections,” she said, according to Politico. “They’ve always decided. Voters decide who wins and who loses. Period. End of story.”