Rep.-elect Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said that some Republican senators will join an effort to challenge Electoral College votes when the joint session of Congress meets on Jan. 6.
The process must be initiated by requires one senator and one House representative. In addition to Greene, Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) and a number of GOP House lawmakers have pledged to challenge the votes.
Greene didn’t say which senators would join the challenge. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Sen.-elect Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) have both suggested they might get involved, but there’s been no public confirmation.
If an objection is filed during the joint session for key states that cast Electoral College votes for Joe Biden, each chamber will have to hold a debate for two hours on whether to disqualify a state’s votes. Then a vote will have to be held in each chamber on whether to throw the votes out.
Greene said she spoke with President Donald Trump about possibly challenging the votes, saying: “I didn’t run for Congress to sit by and be quiet, so I called the president.
“I support him, I voted for him, just like everyone else, and I’m happy to support him in this trying time.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has reportedly told GOP senators not to partake in the challenge, while the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), has told reporters that it’s likely to fail.
Thune said he’s heard of no Republicans willing to join the Brooks-led effort.
In addition to Brooks and Greene, Reps. Jody Hice (R-Ga.), Lance Gooden (R-Texas), Brian Babin (R-Texas), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), and Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) and Rep.-elect Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) said they would join.
“We must stand up for the tens of millions of Americans who want answers to the irregularities surrounding this election,” Gooden said in a letter to Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and John Cornyn (R-Texas). “It is our duty to ensure the integrity of our election is unwavering, and the American people deserve to feel confident their vote matters.”
Babin wrote that if Congress doesn’t investigate alleged voter fraud, he will object to the results. About two-dozen Republicans in the House signed his letter.