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Congressman Guest Condemns Violence and Opposes Electoral College Vote Certification

January 7, 2021

Washington, DC – Congressman Michael Guest (MS-03) voted not to certify the Electoral College votes from the states of Arizona and Pennsylvania. Congressman Guest released the following statement:

"Yesterday, we saw protestors enter the United States Capitol and attempt to disrupt Congress as both the House of Representatives and the United States Senate were debating the certification of votes to the Electoral College. I join many of my colleagues in strongly condemning these actions, and I fully support the efforts of law enforcement to bring to justice those who committed acts of violence or destruction.

It is a responsibility of the United States Congress to defend the most important right of American citizens in the electoral process, the sacred right to vote.

In a joint session of Congress, objections were made to the certification of Arizona's and Pennsylvania's presidential election results. The United States Constitution gives state legislatures the exclusive jurisdiction to determine how elections will be conducted, commonly referred to as the Electors Clause. Simply put, these states failed to conduct elections that followed the requirements set up by their state legislatures and outlined in our Constitution.

Due to these violations, I voted to contest the election results of both Arizona and Pennsylvania.

Throughout this election process, many concerns have been raised regarding the legitimacy of our elections. We, as a nation, must commit ourselves to addressing these concerns to ensure that the legitimacy of future elections is secured and that faith is restored to our electoral process."

Congressman Michael Guest represents Mississippi's Third Congressional District.

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