Published on 12:00 AM, October 25, 2016

Trump a 'sore loser'

Says Clinton; new poll shows Democratic candidate up by 12 points over her rival

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton called Donald Trump a "sore loser" on Sunday because of his refusal at their debate last week to commit to accepting the results of the Nov 8 election.

Clinton, a former secretary of state, said Trump's comments were more consistent with what dictators in non-democratic countries might say about their opponents, reports Reuters.

"To say you won't respect the results of the election, that is a direct threat to our democracy," Clinton told a rally at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. "The peaceful transfer of power is one of the things that makes America America."

"And look, some people are sore losers, and we just got to keep going," she added.

According to a national ABC News poll, Clinton leads the Republican real estate mogul among likely voters by 50 percent to 38 percent.

That is her highest score since the start of the race to succeed Barack Obama in the White House.

Earlier on Sunday, Kellyanne Conway, a top Trump adviser, acknowledged that the Republican presidential candidate was lagging behind Clinton ahead of the election.

Conway said Clinton had "tremendous advantages," including a large campaign war chest that had allowed her to spend millions on television ads.

"We are behind," Conway said on NBC's "Meet the Press." But she added the Trump campaign was looking to sway undecided voters not ready to support Clinton.

As the polling gap has widened, Trump has said repeatedly the election is being "rigged" against him. He has not offered evidence and numerous studies have shown that the US election system, which is decentralized and run by the states, is sound.