Electoral College Votes In Some States To Be Opposed By 11 U.S. Senators
Eleven U.S. Senators now say they will challenge some states’ Electoral College votes on Jan. 6 when the Joint Session of Congress begins. So far, roughly 140 U.S. Representatives have indicated they will object on Jan. 6.
Photo: Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo
The Center Square [By Bethany Blankley]-
Eleven U.S. Senators now say they will challenge some states’ Electoral College votes on Jan. 6 when the Joint Session of Congress begins.
“America is a Republic whose leaders are chosen in democratic elections. Those elections, in turn, must comply with the Constitution and with federal and state law,” they wrote in a joint statement.
“When the voters fairly decide an election, pursuant to the rule of law, the losing candidate should acknowledge and respect the legitimacy of that election. And, if the voters choose to elect a new office-holder, our Nation should have a peaceful transfer of power. The election of 2020, like the election of 2016, was hard fought and, in many swing states, narrowly decided. The 2020 election, however, featured unprecedented allegations of voter fraud, violations, and lax enforcement of election law, and other voting irregularities.”
The group includes seven sitting Republican senators: Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Ron Johnson, R-Wis., James Lankford, R-Okla., Steve Daines, R-Mont., John Kennedy, R-La., Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn. and Mike Braun, R-Ind.
It also includes four senators-elect who were sworn-in on Sunday: Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., Roger Marshall, R-Kan., Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., and Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala.
Their announcement comes several days after U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., was the first senator to announce he planned to object. “I cannot vote to certify the electoral college results on Jan. 6 without raising the fact that some states, particularly Pennsylvania, failed to follow their own state election laws,” Hawley tweeted Dec. 30.
The allegations of fraud and irregularities in the 2020 Election “exceed any in our lifetime,” they wrote, arguing that Congress should immediately appoint an Electoral Commission with full investigative authority to conduct an emergency 10-day audit of election irregularities in several disputed states.
Once the audit is completed, the states would then evaluate the commission’s findings and hold special legislative sessions in their states to certify the votes, and changes to their votes, if the audit warranted it.
“Accordingly, we intend to vote on January 6 to reject the electors from disputed states as not ‘regularly given’ and ‘lawfully certified’ (the statutory requisite), unless and until that emergency 10-day audit is completed,” the group said.
“… support of election integrity should not be a partisan issue,” they added. “A fair and creditable audit – conducted expeditiously and completed well before January 20 – would dramatically improve Americans’ faith in our electoral process and would significantly enhance the legitimacy of whoever becomes our next President. We owe that to the People.”
So far, roughly 140 U.S. Representatives have indicated they will object on Jan. 6.
Democratic former Vice President Joe Biden’s team downplayed the announcement, stating that the Joint Session of Congress’ vote count was “merely a formality.”
Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she’s confident Biden will be sworn into office as the 46th president on Jan. 20.
