Two House Republicans told CNN that they expect at least 140 House Republicans to vote against counting electoral votes

Two House Republicans told CNN that they expect at least 140 House Republicans to vote against counting electoral votes

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Republican allies of President Donald Trump have virtually zero chance of altering the outcome, only to delay Biden’s inevitable claim as the winner of the Electoral College and the next president for a few hours.

There were no credible allegations of any voting problems that would have impacted the election, as claimed by dozens of judges, governors, election officials, the Electoral College, the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Supreme Court. But Trump is determined to say he hasn’t lost – which he did, significantly – and many Republican Party politicians share his illusion or fear of provoking his ire – even if it means voting to undermine democracy.

Both a member of the House and a senator must raise an objection when Congress counts the votes. Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri said on Wednesday that he will object, which will force House and Senate lawmakers to vote if they accept the results of Biden’s victory. Other senators – including those who are entering – can still join the effort, which Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell has privately urged Republicans not to do.

Trump has been pushing for Congress to try to overturn the election result, as his campaign’s attempts to overturn the election in the courts have been repeatedly rejected.

Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse spoke out against this strategy – and the complicity of some of his Republican colleagues – in a Facebook post on Wednesday night, urging Republicans to “reject” the effort to object to the certification process.

“The president and his allies are playing with fire,” he wrote. “They have been asking – first to the courts, then to the state legislatures, now to Congress – to overturn the results of a presidential election. They have called unsuccessful judges and are now calling on federal office holders to invalidate millions and millions of votes. If you make big statements, it’s better to have the evidence. But neither does the president, nor do the institutional arsonists in Congress who oppose the electoral college vote. “

Among the more than a dozen Republican members of the House who have publicly said they will vote against counting electoral votes next week are the Reps. Mo Brooks of Alabama, who is leading the effort, Jody Hice of Georgia, Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey and Joe Wilson of South Carolina.

Included in this group are eight Pennsylvania Republican lawmakers, who announced their intentions in a joint statement on Thursday.

Several new Republican members of the House have also said they will object to the certification process, including elected representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina, Lauren Boebert of Colorado and Diana Harshbarger of Tennessee.

This story has been updated with additional information.

CNN’s Devan Cole, Nicky Robertson, Jeremy Herb, Phil Mattingly and Lauren Fox contributed to this report.

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