US President Joe Biden on Wednesday evening gave a speech in which he condemned political violence and urged voters to protect democracy, ABC News reports.
"We must with an overwhelming voice stand against political violence and voter intimidation, period," said Biden in the speech, which was given from Union Station in Washington and comes less than a week until the midterm elections.
"Stand up and speak against it. We don't settle our differences in America with a riot, a mob, or a bullet or a hammer. We settle them peacefully at the ballot box," he added.
Biden began his remarks by addressing the attack against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband last week, detailing how an intruder broke into their California home and assaulted Paul Pelosi with a hammer.
"The assailant entered the home asking, 'Where's Nancy? Where's Nancy?' Those are the very same words used by the mob when they stormed the United States Capitol on Jan. 6, when they broke windows, kicked in the doors," he stated, according to ABC News.
Biden then went on to denounce the January 6 attackers as a mob "whipped into a frenzy" by former President Donald Trump's lies about the 2020 election. He asserted that those falsehoods are still pervasive in this election cycle.
"American democracy is under attack because the defeated former president of the United States refuses to accept the results of the 2020 election," Biden charged. "He refuses to accept the will of the people, he refuses to accept the fact that he lost."
Biden also addressed vote tallies, trying to temper Election Day expectations by reminding the public that it may take a few days before full results are announced.
"It takes time to count all legitimate ballots in a legal and orderly manner," he said.
"I appeal to all Americans, regardless of party, to meet this moment of national and generational importance," Biden said. "We must vote, knowing what's at stake and not just the policy of the moment."
The midterms will take place next Tuesday, November 8.
A CBS News Battleground Tracker poll published on Sunday predicts a Republican takeover of the House of Representatives in next week’s elections, with a 15-seat gain.
However, many Democrats say they are still confident they will hold the House. An NBC News poll released last week found that Democrats held a 1-point lead on a generic congressional ballot.