When Queen Elizabeth II phoned Trump and other scoops from a new book

Queen Elizabeth Trump call: Book reveals monarch phoned former U.S. president over 2020 election stance

Muhammad Asghar | GlobalBeat

Queen Elizabeth II personally telephoned Donald Trump in 2020 to express concern about his refusal to accept the U.S. presidential election result, according to a new book.

The monarch initiated the call after watching Trump’s November 5 press conference where he claimed ballot fraud without evidence, British journalist Craig Oliver wrote.

The conversation marked an unprecedented breach of protocol for a British sovereign, who by convention avoids involvement in the domestic politics of other nations. Buckingham Palace has maintained for decades that the monarch remains strictly neutral on political matters and does not comment on elections in Commonwealth or foreign countries.

The call occurred on November 6, 2020, one day after major U.S. networks projected Joe Biden as winner and three days after the election, according to Oliver’s account. Trump took the call in the White House residence, where he told the 94-year-old monarch that Democrats had “stolen” the election through mail-in ballots, the book states.

“Your Majesty, they found ballots at 3 a.m. All for Biden. Nobody’s ever seen anything like it,” Trump said during the 12-minute conversation, Oliver wrote. The monarch responded that “democracy requires patience” and urged Trump to “respect the will of the people,” according to the book’s excerpts published Saturday.

Royal courtiers learned of the conversation when the Queen mentioned it during her weekly audience with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on November 11, 2020, Oliver reported. Johnson advised palace officials that any further contact with Trump would be “inadvisable,” according to unnamed Downing Street sources cited in the book.

The revelation comes from “The Room Where It Happened: Royal Edition,” scheduled for release next week by Hodder & Stoughton. Oliver, a former communications director for Prime Minister David Cameron, said he interviewed 17 palace staffers and 3 former Trump administration officials for the book.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment Sunday when contacted by GlobalBeat. “We never discuss private conversations of Her late Majesty,” a palace spokesperson said. The Trump campaign did not respond to requests for comment on the book’s claims.

The book details how palace staff scrambled to manage potential diplomatic fallout after learning of the conversation. Officials feared Trump might reveal the call publicly, potentially compromising the monarch’s neutral position, according to Oliver’s account.

“The Queen had acted out of genuine concern for democratic institutions, not partisan preference,” wrote Oliver. Courtiers developed contingency plans to characterize any disclosure as “concern for democracy generally” rather than criticism of Trump specifically.

Trump left office on January 20, 2021, after Congress certified Biden’s 306-232 Electoral College victory. The former president continues to claim the election was stolen, though courts rejected dozens of lawsuits challenging the results.

Constitutional experts said the monarch’s intervention, while unusual, reflected exceptional circumstances. “The Queen technically advised by her ministers, but this appears to be personal initiative during constitutional crisis abroad,” Professor Vernon Bogdanor of King’s College London told reporters.

The book reveals that Elizabeth II discussed Trump frequently with Commonwealth leaders during 2020 virtual summits. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told her that Trump’s attacks on mail voting “undermined democracy itself,” according to Oliver’s sources.

Palace protocol normally prohibits monarchs from contacting foreign political figures about domestic disputes. The last comparable intervention occurred in 1991, when Elizabeth II phoned Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev during the August coup attempt, former courtiers told Oliver.

U.S.-British relations remained stable throughout the transition period despite the Queen’s private concerns. Biden and Prime Minister Johnson reaffirmed the “special relationship” during their first call in January 2021, focused on trade and climate policy.

Trump visited the Queen twice during his presidency, in June 2018 and June 2019. Their final meeting occurred at Buckingham Palace during a NATO reception on December 3, 2019, where Trump appeared to breach protocol by walking ahead of the monarch.

Background

The British monarchy’s political neutrality evolved over centuries following the 17th century English Civil War. Queen Victoria established modern protocols in the 1800s requiring sovereigns to remain above party politics both domestically and internationally. These conventions were codified in the 20th century as Commonwealth nations developed independent democracies.

Elizabeth II reigned for 70 years from 1952 to 2022, maintaining strict political impartiality throughout. She met 13 U.S. presidents and oversaw the transition from empire to Commonwealth while avoiding political controversy. Her sole major protocol breach involved expressing anti-apartheid views during a 1960s visit to Ghana, which officials later characterized as supporting human rights rather than opposing specific policies.

What’s Next

Royal watchers expect King Charles III to maintain his mother’s non-political stance following his May 2023 coronation. Palace officials have reviewed protocols governing royal communication with foreign leaders after Oliver’s revelations, according to sources familiar with internal discussions. The new guidelines reportedly require Foreign Office approval before any direct royal contact regarding foreign domestic political matters.

The book’s claims may fuel ongoing debates about royal political influence as Britain reviews its constitutional monarchy. Buckingham Palace faces pressure to clarify protocols ahead of the 2024 U.S. presidential election, where Trump leads Republican primary polls by roughly 40 points according to recent surveys.