Donald Trump and some of his supporters have laid the groundwork to declare the November elections illegitimate if he loses.

He’s said the election is going to be “rigged” and that Republicans should start “watching closely” or it will be “taken away from us.”

That Trump would say something like that isn’t surprising considering all the ridiculous and dangerous things he’s said lately. But some of his supporters have been irresponsible in buying into and repeating his language.

A recent story on a Christian radio station suggested that polling that shows Trump trailing Hillary Clinton is inaccurate because the polls are fixed. That feeds right into Trump’s declaration that the entire election — including polls by independent organizations — is rigged in favor of Clinton.

The guest on the radio program said that Trump’s crowds are bigger than Clinton’s and suggested that this fact somehow undermines the credibility of the polls that show Trump lagging Clinton.

She appears to be linking the size of crowds at rallies to the candidate who should be winning in the polls. Bernie Sanders’ rallies dwarfed Clinton’s, but he won far fewer votes in the Democratic primary — 13.2 million to Clinton’s 16.9 million. So the connection between crowd size and voters isn’t as strong as she suggests.

“When Donald Trump says the system is rigged, it really and truly is rigged,” she said. “We know that there is nothing the Left won’t do to win elections. So if the elections turn out to be close in these swing states, Donald Trump has a definite disadvantage — in spite of the enthusiasm of his supporters.”

What evidence does she have that the election is rigged? If she has evidence, she didn’t offer it during the program.

The organization that operates the radio program is a respected one within the Christian community and it does a lot of good. It was started in Mississippi and its radio network can be heard throughout the state.

Why would an organization built on Christian values mislead the public — even unintentionally — with stories like the one that aired Wednesday? Why feed a conspiracy theory — without evidence — that may further divide this nation come November?

Even if the radio program would argue that every guest or source in a story doesn’t speak for the parent organization, it still has given credibility to her words by airing them. Because the organization is Christian, many assume the views and opinions that air on the radio are shared by the organization. That gives legitimacy to every guest or source that is heard on the airwaves.

Imagine for a moment what would happen if millions of Trump supporters question the legitimacy of an American election? It’s hard to imagine that scenario playing out peacefully.

Fox New’s Sean Hannity made a similar argument this week, but he used social media “likes” and “followers” as his evidence that the polls are wrong. He’s assuming that the candidate with the most Facebook “likes” is the country’s favorite and therefore will win in November. Where’s the evidence that this is the case? By his logic, Kim Kardashian should run for president.

Trump may very well win in November, but it won’t be because his crowds were bigger or because he had more Facebook fans. It will only be because voters in key states (not Mississippi unfortunately) choose him at the polls.

If you’re a Trump supporter, you will likely dismiss my criticism as more proof that the media is full of liberal idiots who are seeking to get Clinton elected. But I’m no liberal. I’m a conservative Christian who votes Republican — and listens to Christian radio. I just happen to think it’s dangerous for the party’s nominee and his supporters to question the legitimacy of an election that has yet to take place without proof.

Luke Horton is publisher of The Daily Leader. Email him at luke.horton@dailyleader.com.