Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is leading a last-ditch effort by Senate Republicans to delay the Jan. 6 certification of the Electoral College by Congress, urging an Electoral Commission to examine evidence of potential election fraud in the key battleground states of Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona and Nevada.
In a joint statement issued on Jan. 2, Senators Cruz, Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), John Kennedy (R-La.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), and Mike Braun (R-Ind.), and Senators-Elect Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), and Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) all say there has not been a sufficient investigation of widespread allegations of election fraud.
Per the statement, “The election of 2020, like the election of 2016, was hard fought and, in many swing states, narrowly decided. The 2020 election, however, featured unprecedented allegations of voter fraud, violations and lax enforcement of election law, and other voting irregularities. Voter fraud has posed a persistent challenge in our elections, although its breadth and scope are disputed. By any measure, the allegations of fraud and irregularities in the 2020 election exceed any in our lifetimes.”
Without an adequate investigation, tens of millions Americans believe the election was stolen in favor of former Vice President Joe Biden, with the Senators pointing to polling showing 39 percent of Americans the election was “rigged: “And those allegations are not believed just by one individual candidate. Instead, they are widespread. Reuters/Ipsos polling, tragically, shows that 39% of Americans believe ‘the election was rigged.’ That belief is held by Republicans (67%), Democrats (17%), and Independents (31%).”
Meaning, the American people lack confidence in the outcome of the 2020 election, undermining the consent of the governed and the peaceful transfer of power — something Congress can remedy, by appointing a commission to investigate before Jan. 20, the date for presidential inauguration.