Instead, the black congressman lauded “President Gore” – a reference to the 2000 election, when hanging chads in Florida and the US Supreme Court cost the Democrat the White House…

Sidestepping the current occupant of the Oval Office, Mr Meek hailed Mr Gore and former President Bill Clinton as “stellar public elected figures who once served and are still giving”.

He said: “I’m a fighter and, you know what, I don’t give up and I don’t give in,” Mr Meek thundered.