Senator Josh Hawley to Object to Certification of Electoral College Vote on January 6

Missouri Republican Senator Josh Hawley announced on Wednesday that he will object to the certification of the Electoral College vote on January 6, 2021. On that date, Congress will certify the results of the Electoral College’s vote which granted 306 votes to Joseph R. Biden and 232 to President Donald J. Trump.

“Following both the 2004 and 2016 elections, Democrats in Congress objected during the certification of electoral votes in order to raise concerns about election integrity,” Sen. Hawley wrote in a press release. “They were praised by Democratic leadership and the media when they did. And they were entitled to do so. But now those of us concerned about the integrity of this election are entitled to do the same.”

“I cannot vote to certify the electoral college results on January 6 without raising the fact that some states, particularly Pennsylvania, failed to follow their own state election laws. And I cannot vote to certify without pointing out the unprecedented effort of mega corporations, including Facebook and Twitter, to interfere in this election, in support of Joe Biden. At the very least, Congress should investigate allegations of voter fraud and adopt measures to secure the integrity of our elections. But Congress has so far failed to act.

“For these reasons, I will follow the same practice Democrat members of Congress have in years past and object during the certification process on January 6 to raise these critical issues,” Sen. Hawley added.

As Sen. Hawley pointed out, many Democrats are furious that he will object to the certification process even though Democrats have done so the last three times a Republican has won the presidency.

“The effort by the sitting president of the United States to overturn the results is patently undemocratic,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said. “The effort by others to amplify and burnish his ludicrous claims of fraud is equally revolting. This is America. We have elections. We have results. We make arguments based on fact and reason — not conspiracy and fantasy.”

In 2017, Vice President Joe Biden was interrupted 11 times by Democrat members of Congress while he was presiding over the certification of the Electoral College vote in favor of Donald Trump.

“The electors were not lawfully certified, especially given the confirmed and illegal activities engaged by the government of Russia,” Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., said from the floor of the Senate while the certification process was ongoing.

“People are horrified by the overwhelming evidence of Russian interference in our election,” Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., added.

Some Republicans, however, are not a fan of Senator Hawley’s plan to object on January 6.

“We have a bunch of ambitious politicians who think there’s a quick way to tap into the president’s populist base without doing any real, long-term damage,” Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., wrote in a lengthy Facebook post. “But they’re wrong – and this issue is bigger than anyone’s personal ambitions. Adults don’t point a loaded gun at the heart of legitimate self-government.”

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Photo from POOL/REUTERS