Perry, Smucker plan to object to Electoral College certification

U.S. Reps. Scott Perry and Lloyd Smucker both intend to object Wednesday to the certification of Electoral College votes validating President-Elect Joe Biden's victory, according to a statement issued by eight of Pennsylvania's nine House Republicans.

“Therefore, the state's official certification of electors was based upon a flawed system and an inaccurate vote count,” reads the statement, signed by Perry and Smucker and released Thursday.

U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick was the only member of Pennsylvania's GOP House delegation to not sign the statement. 

Electors from Pennsylvania are among those President Donald Trump's allies are targeting Wednesday in what's traditionally been a mere formality. And the statement signed by the two members of Congress representing parts of York County alleges, without evidence, that the election's results in Pennsylvania cannot be trusted. 

House GOP Conference chair Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., criticized the groups aiming to overturn the election results in a 21-page memo. In it, Cheney said the pro-Trump coalitions in both the House and the Senate would set "an exceptionally dangerous precedent" and violate "the Constitution’s clear text" that states administer presidential elections, should they move forward with their plan. 

Neither Perry, of Carroll Township, nor Smucker, of Lancaster, responded to multiple requests over the past several days seeking additional comment.

Support has grown for the last-ditch effort to overturn the election among Republican back-benchers in the House. Sens. Josh Hawely, R-Mo., and Ted Cruz, R-Texas, have cobbled together a coalition of at least 12 Republicans in the upper chamber, reported Politico. 

Wednesday's vote comes on the heels of a phone call Saturday — recorded by Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger — during which Trump asked state officials there to "find" enough votes to declare him the winner. The Washington Post first reported the recording Sunday. 

Biden's victory in Georgia has withstood multiple recounts and court challenges. 

Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., is among the Republicans in that chamber criticizing the push to overturn the election results. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell also doesn't support the effort, and most observers consider it doomed.

But the objections in both chambers will trigger a debate of Trump's baseless claims about voter fraud and require each member to cast a vote about whether to certify Biden's victory or stick by Trump's crusade to hold on to power. 

— Logan Hullinger can be reached at lhullinger@yorkdispatch.com or via Twitter at @LoganHullYD.