How Can Intelligent People Believe That the Election Was Stolen?

How can intelligent people believe that the election "was stolen"?

I'm not a Trump supporter, as I think anyone who is following my answers has probably figured out by now, but I think it's slightly insulting* to imply that it's not possible to support him and be intelligent at the same time. For me the best argument for supporting Trump would be to say that supporting the revolutionary candidate is worthwhile because the damage a Trump presidency might cause (given the constraints imposed by the rest of the political system, his advisers, and inconvenient stuff like reality) is less than that caused by continuing to support a corrupt political system that is so tightly controlled by a ruling elite for their own benefit. Essentially, you don't agree with everything he stands for, but you do think a shake-up of the system is long overdue. Who better to shake things up? You might also believe that his more outrageous rhetoric is designed to win media attention rather than explicitly outline the manifesto he intends to follow if elected. After all, a smart long-shot candidate SHOULD be saying different things from the more mainstream players, because t have to get noticed and build up a head of steam somehow. Perhaps what we're seeing is a smart political campaign here. It's sure as hell working right now. You might even point out that in recent decades the US has elected an actor and a globally-ridiculed son of a former President who seemed to spend more time on vacation than doing anything else. And would presumably be considering a former Mr Universe had he been born in the right place. Maybe it just doesn't matter that much who the President is, maybe there really are enough checks and balances in place to stop him (or her) behaving outrageously. In which case, perhaps choosing a successful** businessman who can inspire is more important than picking someone who doesn't stop to measure every word he says. Plus of course you have the tactical voters - those in the "I'm supporting Trump because I want a Democratic President". T might not get what t want. T might even get what t really don't want. But I think you can argue that's a perfectly reasonable approach.*** If you were truly Machiavellian you might even think Trump winning in the face on a looming recession and debt-crisis might be a nice idea. A painful four-year term whoever is in charge, followed by The Donald sheepishly returning to late-night cable TV with the biggest defeat in recent electoral history. I'm not sure I've even convinced myself it's possible to intelligently support Trump here, let alone anyone else. But that's the best I've got I'm afraid. * I suspect a fair number of people are completely ok with the idea of insulting Trump supporters, and I might be one of them. ** If you believe that he is in fact a successful businessman, as opposed to a rich kid who has played around with a steadily-increasing fortune through no great skill of his own while leaving many of his investors in the dust. *** You can also argue that those people are bonkers, but that's not what this question is asking me to do.