Congressional joint session starts; Mid-Missouri House members to oppose Electoral College vote
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
US Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Jefferson City) has said he is joining other GOP legislators to oppose the Electoral College count.
The vote is set to be certified Wednesday afternoon in DC before a joint session of Congress. President Trump has called for his vice president to reject the count.
Watch live coverage from the joint session in the media player below.
Many of Missouri's Republican House members have said they will reject the. Recently, Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Harrisonville) and Rep. Sam Graves (R-Tarkio) who represent portions of Mid-Missouri have already said they will reject the count.
Several US Senators have also said they will object to the Electoral College vote including Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Missouri).
In a joint release posted on Leutkemeyer's website, he and 35 other GOP House representatives said they are objecting to electors they believe were picked unconstitutionally. The release said, "This is our solemn duty, and our position on this threshold legal question has been widely known and published for weeks."
The release added Democrats in previous presidential elections have also opposed the vote.
"We understand that our support of objections in the joint session may not be sustained by a majority of both houses of Congress. Our oath, nonetheless, is to 'support and defend the Constitution of the United States,' and to 'bear true faith and allegiance to the same.' Taking this action today will not undermine our beleaguered institutions, as some critics charge, but rather reinforce and defend them," the House members said in the release.
Many US representatives signed onto an amicus brief with the US Supreme Court in December to throw out Electoral College votes from Michigan, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin because they accused those states of violating the Constitution when selecting their electors. The case was ultimately thrown out.
Multiple lawsuits trying to overturn the election results filed by Trump's legal team have also been thrown out of court.
