US President Donald Trump has warned his fellow Republicans their opponents may \"steal\" November\'s election, as his party anointed him as their candidate.
\"They\'re using Covid to defraud the American people,\" Mr Trump told delegates on the first day of the party convention in North Carolina.
Mr Trump repeated his much-disputed claims that mail-in ballots could lead to voter fraud.
Opinion polls suggest he currently trails Democratic challenger Joe Biden.
Addressing delegates in person at a party conference that has been dramatically scaled down by Covid-19, Mr Trump accused Democrats of \"using Covid to steal an election\".
- Trump nominated - his family dominate convention schedule
- Does US postal voting lead to ‘tremendous fraud’?
\"The only way they can take this election away from us is if this is a rigged election,\" he said. \"We\'re going to win.\"
As a formality, he was officially nominated to be the Republican nominee earlier on Monday at the convention in the city of Charlotte.
The president is due to give a speech to the party convention on Thursday. It is unusual for a candidate to address the convention before their formal acceptance speech.
Speaking later on Monday night is Mr Trump\'s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr, as well as his girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle.
Former UN ambassador Nikki Haley will also speak, as well as South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, the only black Republican senator.
