US election: Mitt Romney stands by 'gaffe' comments

Mitt Romney has defended remarks he made at a private donor dinner after a secretly filmed video emerged showing him disparaging Barack Obama voters.

In the footage, the Republican nominee is shown saying that the 47% of Americans who back the president do not pay income tax and would never vote for him.

At a press conference following the publication of the video, he told reporters that his thoughts were "not elegantly stated" but that he stood by the idea behind them.