Two more SC congressmen vow to object to certification of Biden win
Two of South Carolina’s congressmen, U.S. Reps. Joe Wilson and Ralph Norman, announced Thursday that they will object to the electoral college’s certification of President-Elect Joe Biden’s win on Jan. 6.
Wilson and Norman join a small group of other Republicans planning to object in the final steps to certifying Biden’s win. The move is likely to just delay the certification process instead of stopping it all together.
“As a former Lexington County Election Commissioner, not just as a Member of Congress, I am disgusted at the irregularities in the 2020 presidential election,” Wilson said in a statement.
Norman also pointed to reports of voting irregularities, which have been refuted by election officials and courts across the country.
“At the end of the day, I believe Congress has a responsibility to ensure that our federal elections are fair and transparent,” Norman said in a statement.
Wilson and Norman aren’t the first congressmen from South Carolina to sign on to the initiative. U.S. Rep. Jeff Duncan announced Wednesday that he would be objecting due to what he said are questions about election fraud in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — all battleground states that elected Biden.
While others in South Carolina’s congressional delegation have not sounded off on the issue, Republican Congresswoman-Elect Nancy Mace told the Post and Courier that she does not plan to object to the certification.
Wilson, Norman and Duncan are among many allies of President Donald Trump alleging that the November election was rife with fraud. Many of the allegations of fraud center around mail-in voting, which was expanded by many states to combat the spread of COVID-19. South Carolina is one of the states to expand by-mail absentee voting for the election.
However, there has been no evidence to suggest there was widespread voter fraud that could have changed the results of the election.
Trump’s now former attorney general, William Barr, said this month the Department of Justice had uncovered no evidence of widespread voter fraud that could have swayed the election results. And multiple court challenges — at least 59 — from Trump’s campaign and his allies also have been denied.
“I had counted on courts to fully consider lawsuits by 18 states and 126 members of Congress, but the Courts have declined to act and it is my duty to object to the Electoral count because irregularities were never addressed,” Wilson said in a statement.
Wilson, Norman and Duncan join Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, who announced his intent to challenge certification Wednesday morning. Hawley also voiced concerns about possible voter fraud.
Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky, warned his Senate colleagues earlier this month not to dispute the Electoral College certification. Doing so could trigger a vote, where Republicans would publicly have to sound off on whether they believe the unproven allegations of voter fraud.
That vote, along with a debate, has now been triggered in both chambers by Hawley and Duncan.
A simple majority will be needed in both the House and Senate for the objection to be upheld. Chances that the challenge could be effective are slim, as Democrats hold the majority in the U.S. House and several Senate Republicans have acknowledged Biden’s win publicly.
This story was originally published December 31, 2020 at 12:11 PM.
