When a Senate Democrat Tried to Challenge an Election
Several Republican members of Congress plan to formally object to the outcome of the 2020 election today. Barbara Boxer objected to Ohio’s results in 2005—but that was different, she insists.
Several Republican members of Congress plan to formally object to the outcome of the 2020 election today. The move is controversial, even among Republicans. “Adults don’t point a loaded gun at the heart of legitimate self-government,” wrote Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska in an open letter to his colleagues at the end of December.
Republicans didn’t invent the idea of holding up election certifications with this kind of objection, however. In 2017, Democratic representatives including Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Barbara Lee of California to challenge Trump’s presidential victory, citing voter suppression and Russian interference. A dozen or so Democrats something similar in 2001, after George W. Bush’s controversial win. The challenge that
