Five Congressmen representing North Carolina plan to object the Electoral College votes
On Wednesday, January 6, 2021, the United States Congress will count the Electoral College votes for the 2020 Presidential Election. Vice President Mike Pence as president of the Senate will count each state’s Electoral College Votes. One representative and one senator must object to the state’s electors to halt the proceedings. After an objection, the joint session suspends, and the House and Senate go into separate sessions to consider the objection. For the objection to be sustained, both chambers must agree to it with a majority vote.
“My first act as a member of Congress will be to object to the Electoral College certification of the 2020 election,” said newly elected Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R) of North Carolina’s District 11. “The right to vote in a free and fair election is the cornerstone of our Republic. Attempts to undermine this strike at the very heart of a representative government “of, by, and for the People.” I will not be silent.”
Cawthorn is joined by Rep. Greg Murphy (R) of North Carolina’s District 3 who plans to object to the certification of the 2020 election. “Americans deserve a free, fair, and accurate election. One in which all Americans, regardless of political affiliation, have confidence in the results. I have been quite vocal in stating that to preserve the integrity of our elections, we must fight to ensure that every voice is heard, every legal vote is counted, and every count is confirmed.”
Representatives pointed out that their objections were not about a person, but about the constitution.
“The Constitution clearly states that it is the state legislatures that set election law, not governors, state boards of election, state supreme courts or other actors as we know was the case in these states,” said Rep. David Rouzer (R) of North Carolina’s District 7. “The late changes made to election laws in these states affect the entire country in the presidential election, disenfranchising voters from other states as well as their own where the state-wide laws were changed for some counties and not others.”
Others feel it is their constitutional duty to object to the certification of the 2020 election.
“I believe it is my Constitutional duty to object to certifying the Electoral College votes of certain states that violated their own election laws,” said Rep. Richard Hudson (R) of North Carolina’s District 8. “Every American should want to ensure our election laws were followed correctly and investigate every case of alleged fraud, no matter how it would impact the outcome of the election.”
The removal of safeguards and the timeframe of accepting ballots was a primary reason for the objection.
“Millions of Americans believe there were consequential problems in November’s presidential election. I’ve heard from an overwhelming number of my own constituents, and they share this belief,” said Rep. Ted Budd (R) of North Carolina’s District 13. “They witnessed voter safeguards unconstitutionally removed by non-legislative officials. They saw states with no signature verification, no voter ID laws, outdated voter rolls, poll watchers denied access to the count, and ballots accepted long after Election Day had passed.”
US Congressmen representing North Carolina in the Senate have not spoken out in favor of objecting the Electoral College certification of the 2020 election. Sen. Richard Burr (R) said “no” when asked if he would join in the objection.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R) wrote, "in total Vice President Joe Biden received 302 electoral votes and President Trump received 232 electoral votes. Now that the Electoral College has voted, it appears that Vice President Biden is the presumptive President-Elect. However, I believe it is essential that all legal proceedings should continue to be reviewed by our justice system to ensure a fair election. Please know that I will continue to work with my Senate colleagues, and state and local officials to ensure elections remain secure and their integrity is upheld."
