Fact Check: US Vice President Mike Pence, Can Republicans Manipulate Electoral College Results?

TORONTO – After the U.S. Electoral College voted to confirm Joe Biden’s victory in Monday’s presidential election, a text sharing arguments online still have a chance for the vice president and Republicans to manipulate those results.

Existing text One of President Donald Trump’s lawyers, Jenna Ellis, who represented him during the unsuccessful legal challenges of the presidential election results, has been making rounds on social media. This was shared by Trump supporters as proof that the outcome settled by the Electoral College votes could still be manipulated.

Claim:

The post explains how Vice President Mike Pence and House and Senate Republicans can oppose and lose electoral college votes confirming Biden’s victory when Congress convenes a U.S. meeting to confirm the results on Jan. 6.

According to the text, Pence has “the power to preside over the Senate that day” and he can accept or reject the move.

“Mike Pence had full authority that day as written in the Constitution,” it said.

Verification of Electoral College ballots on Monday “means nothing,” the text said.

“The votes are open and at that point a member of the House can raise their hand to object to the Vice President on the status of the voters’ votes. That objection covers fraud or any other reason and with the second of that objection everything changes. Everything !!”

That post explains the House and the Senate will adjourn for at least two hours to discuss separately whether to accept or reject the objection.

The text reads, “The vote is for the senator, the vice president is the decisive vote in the Senate if necessary, but there is only one vote for the House of Representatives, not for each state, not for each member of the House !!! Republicans have 30 representative votes compared to the Democrats’ 20 representative votes.”

According to the post, if this scenario unfolds, Trump will be re-elected and “Democrats, media, social networks and globalists around the world will be alert and chaos will ensue. Large. ”

“Our ancestors were very intelligent, because they knew that one day it would happen. So, do not listen to the media and all their deceptions and lies. All you have to do is read the constitution and you know that in the end the law, policies and policies are on our side. Tic Tac Toe” Says.

Actual check

Source:

First, Ellis himself disputed the argument that this text was written by Trump’s lawyer Ellis.

In a Facebook post From her official account on Monday evening, Ellis denied that she was the author.

“It simply came to our notice then. I do not know where this person found it, but I did not write or share it. Do not accept or share anything that is not directly from my certified social media or Team Trump official, ”she wrote.

In her comments on the post, some users saw it being shared in the comments section of a Fox News article, citing another person’s text. First posted on Facebook Via a radio station in Colorado.

The radio station did Share the text on Facebook And described it as “accurate,” but they did not attribute it to Ellis. However, it is unclear whether they did so in the first place and deleted that post.

Can Republicans object to the Electoral College vote count?

Yes, members of Congress are allowed to oppose the counting of electoral college votes from a given state.

However, that objection can only be considered if it is approved by a representative of the House and Senate.

“Such objections must be submitted in writing and signed by at least one senator and one representative.” The provisions of Title 3, Section 15 of the US Code State.

Although the Republican in Congress is likely to object on Jan. 6, Graham Dodds, who grew up in the United States, a professor and senator at Concordia University of Political Science, who specializes in American politics, said it was unlikely to be approved.

“I think that’s what’s going to happen. Yesterday, Said Sen Mitch McConnell, ‘Guys don’t do this.’ So it seems that many Republican senators have already said they will not do it, ”Dads‌ told CTVNews.ca on Wednesday.

In the event of an objection by a member of the House and supported by a Senator, the House and Senate shall vote on it separately.

Who will vote in the debate?

The text shared on social media is wrong to say: “There is only one vote for the House of Representatives, not for the state, not for the member of the House.”

According to the 12th Amendment Under the U.S. Constitution, only the state House of Representatives can vote to elect a president if no one gets a majority in the Electoral College vote.

However, before that can happen, any objections to Biden’s victory must first be voted on and supported by both the House and the Senate. In the process, every member of the House, with a majority of Democrats, votes.

“I think the Republicans will probably object. I do not think there is a way for the House to vote to move forward, even if the senator does. So no, for multiple reasons, I do not see it. [the objection] Is thriving, ”Dads said.

What is the role of Vice President Mike Pence?

Pence, as president of the Senate, will preside when the vote rises on Jan. 6, but the role is largely conservative.

Pence announces a roll call for each state so that their ballots can be counted, ask if there are any objections against the counting of votes for a particular state and, if so, announce if the objection persists. The candidate is also declared the winner if he / she achieves a majority in the Electoral College votes.

As the text says on social media, when it comes to his “decisive vote”, it is only relevant to the debate in the Senate, in which Republicans already have a majority and it does not affect the separate vote in the House where the Democrats are. Hold on.

“At this ceremony, as I said, it was the vice president who ultimately sorted it out, but he did not have a completely free hand. I mean there is a process,” Dads said.