PRESS RELEASE Contact: press@congressionalintegrity.org
For Immediate Release
Date: October 23, 2023
Washington, D.C. – After almost three weeks of failing to elect a new Speaker, the MAGA House GOP will hold a candidate forum tonight with nine new Speaker contenders who all have one thing in common: a record of election denial. All nine candidates, Reps. Jack Bergman, Byron Donalds, Tom Emmer, Kevin Hern, Mike Johnson, Dan Meuser, Gary Palmer, Austin Scott, and Pete Sessions either voted to overturn the 2020 election or joined litigation efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
In response, former January 6th Committee Spokesperson and Congressional Integrity Project senior advisor, Hannah Muldavin, issued the following statement:
“After weeks of holding Congress hostage over their inability to elect a new Speaker, the MAGA House GOP cannot put forward even one candidate for Speaker that is not an election denier. The American people deserve a Speaker of the House who will stand up for our democracy and can state unequivocally that Joe Biden is the legitimate President. Any member that fails to acknowledge the results of the 2020 election is dangerous to our democracy and unqualified to be Speaker.”
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Read about their records of election denial below:
Rep. Jack Bergman Voted To Overturn The Election, Helped Coordinate Giving Pro-Trump Operatives Access To Michigan Voting Machines. Rep. Jack Bergman voted against certification of the Electoral College and joined an amicus brief seeking to throw out the votes in four key states won by Joe Biden. Bergman helped coordinate county officials in Michigan and out-of-state pro-Trump operatives who were granted access to examine Dominion voting machines in Antrim County in December 2020. Bergman voted against creating a bipartisan commission to investigate the January 6 attack on the Capitol citing false and misleading claims about Democrats to justify his vote. Bergman has endorsed Trump’s 2024 campaign.
Rep. Byron Donalds Voted To Overturn The Election. Shortly after being sworn into office, Rep. Byron Donalds voted against certification of the Electoral College, claiming that he wanted to “ask legitimate questions to restore faith in our election system.” Donalds also joined a letter to Nancy Pelosi with 25 other Republican members-elect demanding an investigation “of the irregularities in November’s election.” Donalds has endorsed Trump’s 2024 campaign.
Rep. Tom Emmer Joined The Legal Effort To Overturn The Election, Backed January 6 Participants And Conspiracy Theorists For Office As The Head Of The NRCC. Rep. Tom Emmer signed an amicus brief in support of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawsuit seeking to overturn the election, claiming that, “All legal votes should be counted and the process should be followed — the integrity of current and future elections depends on this premise and this suit is a part of that process.” In his role as chair of the NRCC, Emmer backed dozens of candidates who either worked to overturn the 2020 election or participated in the January 6 attack on the Capitol, as well as those who continued to spread conspiracy theories about the legitimacy of past elections, or planned to interfere with future elections.
Rep. Kevin Hern Voted To Overturn The Election. Rep. Kevin Herin voted to overturn the election for Trump and joined the Texas amicus brief that sought to overturn the votes of millions of Americans, claiming that the election was “shrouded in doubt and allegations of fraud.
Rep. Mike Johnson Voted To Overturn The Election, Urged Trump Supporters To “FIGHT” On The Morning Of January 6. Rep Mike Johnson voted to overturn the results of the 2020 election and signed a brief supporting Texas’s lawsuit seeking to throw out the election results in key states. The day after Joe Biden was declared the winner of the election, Johnson said he called Donald Trump and told him: “‘Stay strong and keep fighting, sir! The nation is depending upon your resolve. We must exhaust every available legal remedy to restore Americans’ trust in the fairness of our election system.’” On the morning of January 6, Johnson tweeted that “We MUST fight for election integrity, the Constitution, and the preservation of our republic!” Johnson has continued to attack Democrats for focusing on investigating the January 6 attack and referred to it as the “third impeachment” of Donald Trump.
Rep. Dan Meuser Voted To Overturn The Election And Tried To Have Pennsylvania’s Votes Thrown Out. Rep. Dan Meuser voted to overturn the results of the 2020 election and signed a brief supporting Texas’s lawsuit seeking to throw out the election results in Meuser’s own state. Meuser started to cast doubt on the election while votes were still being counted claiming that there would be, “a real credibility issue here whatever the outcome is.” After Joe Biden was declared the winner, Meuser continued to claim that the election was not over “because the votes have not been accurately counted. Meuser has endorsed Trump’s 2024 campaign.
Rep. Gary Palmer Voted To Overturn The Election. Rep. Gary Palmer was one of the 147 Republicans who voted to overturn the election and he supported the Texas lawsuit seeking to throw out electoral votes in key swing states. Palmer claimed he was overturning the election because of “serious, well-founded concerns about the manner in which several states conducted the 2020 Presidential election.” Palmer has endorsed Trump’s 2024 campaign.
Rep. Austin Scott Said It Was “Not Right” That Joe Biden Received So Many Absentee Votes In Georgia, Supported The Legal Effort To Overturn The Election. Rep. Austin Scott signed an amicus brief in support of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawsuit seeking to overturn the election. Although Scott eventually voted to certify Joe Biden’s Electoral College victory, he continued to cast doubt on the legitimacy of the election, claiming at a January 4 rally for David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler that “something’s not right” about Joe Biden receiving 850,000 absentee votes during the pandemic in 2020 when Barack Obama and Bill Clinton received fewer than 100,000 mail votes during their presidential campaigns.
Rep. Pete Sessions Met With “Stop The Steal” Organizers Days Before January 6. Rep. Pete Sessions voted against certification of the Electoral College and joined an amicus brief seeking to throw out the votes in four key states won by Joe Biden. On January 3, Sessions tweeted, “Had a great meeting today with folks from ‘Stop the Steal’ at our nation’s Capitol. I encouraged them to keep fighting and assured them I look forward to doing MY duty on January 6th.” Sessions deleted the tweet on January 7 after the violent attack on the Capitol. Sessions has endorsed Trump’s 2024 campaign.