“Proud to sign this statement alongside so many of my colleagues. We owe it to the American people to protect the integrity of our electoral system. Period,” Owens tweeted.
He and Rep. Chris Stewart earlier vowed to challenge of electoral votes in key states. Others in Utah’s all-GOP delegation have said directly or through spokespeople that they would not join. Sens. Mitt Romney and Mike Lee were expected to speak or make additional statements Wednesday.
The statement signed by Owens said, “We are convinced the election laws in certain states were changed in an unconstitutional manner” from what legislatures had set up for presidential elections “by a variety of other officials, including governors, secretaries of state, election officials, judges, and private parties.”
They added, “That usurpation of the legislatures’ sole authority, delegated by the Constitution, was a primary reason why the election of 2020 became riddled with an unprecedented number of serious allegations of fraud and irregularities.”
However, courts have repeatedly and universally dismissed cases by President Donald Trump and his allies claiming fraud for lack of evidence.
Still the group of 37 wrote that Congress “is the last bulwark in a presidential election to ensure the Constitution has been followed,” so they will challenge and vote against accepting the Electoral College results in several states.
“Taking this action today will not undermine our beleaguered institutions, as some critics charge, but rather reinforce and defend them,” the wrote. “Our support of objections will not diminish the value of the vote of any individual citizen, but rather protect that value, by ensuring the Constitution is followed.”
The group acknowledged their efforts will likely fail. Both houses would need to vote to sustain challenges to remove votes from any state, and the House is controlled by Democrats. Also, a bipartisan majority in the Senate has stated opposition to the challenge.
“In 10 years in the NFL, I played in a lot of losing games,” he said. “If you leave everything on the field and you’ve done everything you can and there’s nothing left, then it’s a winning game regardless of what the score might be.”
He added, “I plan to leave everything on the field” for Trump by helping to challenge electoral votes in states he believes Trump actually won. Owens added, “There’s no question in my mind that I think he won.”
Also this week, Stewart said he will join the challenge.
“Until we have resolved the issues surrounding voting irregularities, ballot integrity and security, and the implementation of state election laws, I cannot, in good conscience, uphold the oath I took to protect and defend our Constitution by voting to certify the election,” he tweeted.
Others in the Utah delegation have denounced the effort to try to keep Trump in office.
He added, “Were Congress to actually reject state electors, partisans would inevitably demand the same any time their candidate had lost. Congress, not voters in the respective states, would choose our presidents. ... I could never have imagined seeing these things in the greatest democracy in the world. Has ambition so eclipsed principle?”
For such efforts, Romney was heckled with shouts of “traitor” on a flight to Washington from Utah by right-wingers traveling to join protests there, and confronted by some before the flight who were not wearing masks asking why he is not supporting Trump.
“I have faith in America’s election system and those who work tirelessly to ensure our elections are secure,” he wrote. “I plan to respect each state’s decision, certify the election, and continue to work with my colleagues on solutions for Utah.”
Rep. Blake Moore said in an interview last week, “I would need to see very, very substantial evidence to challenge the Electoral College. … I have not seen that to the degree that would change the outcome of the election. So that’s where I am currently on that.”
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, has said through a spokesperson that he does not plan to join the challenge, which brought Trump’s displeasure and pressure at a political rally in Georgia this week.
“Mike Lee is here, but I’m a little angry at him,” Trump said, as supporters cheered.
