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Sen. Kelly Loeffler says she will object to electoral college certification

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sen. Kelly Loeffler announced Monday that she will follow other Republicans in objecting to the certification of the Electoral College on Wednesday.

“Elections are the bedrock of our democracy and the American people deserve to be 100% confident in our election system and its outcomes. But right now, tens of millions of Americans have real concerns about the way in which the November Presidential election was conducted — and I share their concerns,” Loeffler said in a statement.

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“The American people deserve a platform in Congress, permitted under the Constitution, to have election issues presented so that they can be addressed. That’s why, on January 6th, I will vote to give President Trump and the American people the fair hearing they deserve and support the objection to the Electoral College certification process. I have also already introduced legislation to establish a commission to investigate election irregularities and recommend election integrity measures, which I will be working to get passed in the Senate. We must restore trust, confidence and integrity in our election system.”

Loeffler’s office said she will object on her own and not part of Sen. Ted Cruz’ electoral commission.

Loeffler was appointed to fill the rest of retired Sen. Johnny Isakson’s term and therefore remains a senator until the runoff election is determined. David Perdue’s term however ended on Sunday and he can’t be part of the vote.

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The Republicans — a dozen senators and many more House members — have cited Trump’s repeated charges of widespread fraud.

There was not widespread fraud in the election, as has been confirmed by a range of election officials in Georgia, other states and by William Barr, who stepped down as attorney general last month.

Nearly all of the legal challenges put forth by Trump and his allies have been dismissed by judges.

Under federal law, Congress must meet Jan. 6 to open sealed certificates from each state that contain a record of their electoral votes. Bipartisan representatives of both chambers read the results out loud and do an official count.

The president of the Senate, Vice President Mike Pence, presides over the session and declares the winner. The session begins at 1 p.m. EST.

[Electoral College challenge: What will happen Wednesday and will it change the vote?]

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.