A Republican lawmaker's bid to overturn the presidential election by suing Mike Pence was dismissed in court
- A lawsuit brought by Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas and other Republicans seeking to overturn the 2020 presidential election was dismissed by a federal judge on Friday.
- The lawsuit sought to give Pence the authority to accept or reject the election results of individual states when Congress meets next week to certify the Electoral College results.
- The last-ditch effort was unlikely to succeed. Pence and the Justice Department had asked the judge to reject the request.
A lawsuit brought by Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas and other Republicans seeking to overturn the 2020 presidential election was dismissed by a federal judge on Friday.
Gohmert filed a lawsuit against Vice President Mike Pence, attempting to have him declare President Donald Trump as the winner when Congress meets next week to certify the Electoral College results. The lawsuit argued Pence had the authority to choose which states' electoral votes to count.
US District Judge Jeremy Kernodle said that Gohmert and the others lacked standing to sue, dismissing the lawsuit.
Kernodle, a Trump-appointed judge, said the plaintiffs did not suffer legally recognizable injury that could be traced to Pence, the defendant of the lawsuit. Gohmert's lawyers said Friday night they will appeal the decision, The Washington Post reported.
President-elect Joe Biden won the election by receiving 306 electoral votes compared to Trump's 232. The results have been certified in every state, and presidential electors cast their votes last month.
On January 6, Pence will oversee a joint session of Congress to formally certify the results. The event is typically a procedural one, confirming the winner that voters and the Electoral College have already chosen.
The lawsuit, which was filed by Gohmert and Trump supporters from Arizona, sought to give Pence the ability to reject individual state results, theoretically giving him the ability to reject states won by Biden and award Trump a second term, despite the will of the voters.
The last-ditch effort was unlikely to succeed. Earlier this week, Pence and the Justice Department said the lawsuit was misdirected and issued a request on Thursday asking the judge to reject the case.
In response, Gohmert said the vice president is not just "the glorified envelope-opener in chief" and asserted the lawsuit was rightfully directed at Pence.
He also mentioned the 140 House Republicans who reportedly plan to vote against the certification of the Electoral College vote during the joint session next week, though doing so would not prevent the confirmation of Biden's win.
The session on Wednesday is likely to be contentious due to the planned objections. Trump is also encouraging supporters to demonstrate in DC on that day, tweeting about a "BIG Protest rally" on January 6.
The lawsuit was the latest in a string of legal defeats for Trump allies. Since the election, the Trump campaign and some of the president's supporters have mounted dozens of legal challenges, winning zero out of at least 40 lawsuits.
- Read more:
- After Pence told a court he was the wrong person to sue, Trump fans attempting to overturn the 2020 election told the judge he shouldn't listen to the VP because he's more than just a 'glorified envelope-opener in chief
- Pence asked a judge to kill a lawsuit filed by Trump fans seeking to empower him to overturn Biden's election win on January 6
- Trump and Republican officials have won zero out of at least 40 lawsuits they've filed since Election Day
- How Republicans could use their bruising 2020 legal defeats to gut voting rights