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(CNN) – Nearly a dozen Republican senators and senators-elect announced Saturday that they will vote against the electoral vote recount next week when Congress is expected to certify the victory of President-elect Joe Biden, despite no credible evidence to suggest widespread electoral fraud in the 2020 elections.
The 11 Republican lawmakers said they intend to support an objection to Electoral College votes, if one is filed, and propose an electoral commission to conduct a “10-day emergency audit” of election results in the “states in dispute”. The group includes Senators Ted Cruz of Texas, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, James Lankford of Oklahoma, Steve Daines of Montana, John Kennedy of Louisiana, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Mike Braun of Indiana, and Senators-elect Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming. , Roger Marshall from Kansas, Bill Hagerty from Tennessee and Tommy Tuberville from Alabama.
“A fair and credible audit, conducted promptly and completed well before January 20, would dramatically improve the faith of Americans in our electoral process and significantly enhance the legitimacy of whoever becomes our next president. We owe it to the people.” they said in a statement, adding that the congressional vote on January 6 is the “only constitutional power left to consider and force the resolution of the multiple allegations of serious electoral fraud.”
Pence appeared to back the measure on Saturday.
“Vice President (Mike) Pence shares the concerns of millions of Americans about voter fraud and irregularities in the last election. The Vice President appreciates the efforts of members of the House and Senate to use the authority they have under the law to raise objections and present evidence to Congress and the American people on January 6, “Marc Short, the vice president’s chief of staff, said in a statement to CNN.
As CNN previously reported, the objection of President Donald Trump’s Republican allies has virtually zero chance of changing the election outcome, only to delay for a few hours the inevitable claim of Biden’s victory as the Electoral College winner and the next. President.
There have been no credible allegations of voting problems that would have affected the elections, as claimed by dozens of state and federal courts, governors, state election officials and the departments of Homeland Security and Justice. And none of the Republican officials who oppose Biden’s victory have objected to Trump’s victories, or in some cases their own, on the same day.
On Wednesday, Republican Senator Josh Hawley from Missouri became the first senator to announce plans to oppose the results, an important move as both a member of the House and a senator must object when Congress counts electoral votes. . CNN previously reported that at least 140 House Republicans are expected to vote against the electoral vote count in Congress, according to two Republican House members.
Hawley tweeted Saturday that he is “excited to see more senators join the fight.”
In his statement, the 11 Republican senators and senators-elect did not specify the states they intend to reject, but Hawley has indicated that he plans to object to the certification of at least one state, Pennsylvania.
Utah Republican Senator Mitt Romney described the move as an “egregious ploy” after the Americans decided to elect Biden.
“The heinous ploy to turn voters away may heighten the political ambition of some, but it threatens our Democratic Republic dangerously. The power of Congress to turn down voters is reserved for the most extreme and unusual circumstances. These are far from it. More Americans participated in this election than ever, and made their decision, “Romney said in a statement Saturday.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has said the vote would mark one of the most important, perhaps the most significant, he has ever cast in his life, told the Republican Senate conference to vote conscientiously, but He also privately urged members not to join efforts. Some Republican senators have already spoken out publicly against the strategy.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, apparently dismissed the announcement Saturday from a handful of Republicans, tweeting: “Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be President and Vice President of the United States in 18 days.”
The 11 Republican lawmakers appeared to acknowledge Saturday that their efforts may be futile, saying they “are not naive” and “hope that most, if not all, Democrats, and perhaps more than a few Republicans, will vote otherwise.”
Mike Gwin, a spokesman for Biden, scrapped the Republican senators’ plan entirely, calling it a “stunt” on Saturday.
“This hack will not change the fact that President-elect Biden will be sworn in on January 20,” Gwin said. “And these unsubstantiated claims have already been scrutinized and dismissed by Trump’s own attorney general, dozens of courts and election officials from both parties.”
Trump has been pushing for Congress to try to overturn the election result, while his campaign’s attempts to overturn the election through the courts have repeatedly been rejected.
On Friday, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit (https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/01/politics/gohmert-pence-electoral-college-lawsuit-thrown-out/index.html) from GOP Rep Louie Gohmert of Texas and several Arizona Republicans seeking to force Pence to help launch the election to Trump.
This story has been updated with additional news on Saturday.
This story was first published on CNN.com, “Nearly a Dozen Republican Senators Announce Plans to Vote Against Electoral Vote Counting.”
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