Washington, DC—March 23, 2021….Congressman Steve Womack (AR-3) joined Congresswoman Ashley Hinson (IA-1) and a bicameral group of their colleagues in sending a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi expressing their outrage with her brazen efforts to overturn the state-certified election results in Iowa's Second Congressional District and unseat Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks, flouting the will of Iowa voters for her own political gain.
"Iowans made their choice known at the ballot box and Congresswoman Miller-Meeks was elected fairly; the votes have been counted, recounted, and certified in a bipartisan manner. She has taken the Oath of Office and is already serving her constituents. We stand firmly with the American people of Iowa’s Second Congressional District – whose right and will it is for her to serve as their elected Representative in Congress," wrote the lawmakers. "Furthermore, we are astounded by your hypocrisy as the Speaker to support an investigation into this free and fair election while simultaneously claiming voter fraud does not exist nationally. If election security concerns are unwarranted, as you claim, then there is certainly no reason for the Committee on House Administration to be moving forward with such an outrageous request to unseat the legitimately elected Congresswoman”
The letter with a full list of signers can be found here or the text can be read below:
Dear Speaker Pelosi:
We write to express our outrage at the activities you have undertaken as Speaker in the matter of Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks as Representative of Iowa’s Second Congressional District. Iowans made their choice known at the ballot box and Congresswoman Miller-Meeks was elected fairly; the votes have been counted, recounted, and certified in a bipartisan manner. She has taken the Oath of Office and is already serving her constituents. We stand firmly with the American people of Iowa’s Second Congressional District – whose right and will it is for her to serve as their elected Representative in Congress.
Furthermore, we are astounded by your hypocrisy as the Speaker to support an investigation into this free and fair election while simultaneously claiming voter fraud does not exist nationally. If election security concerns are unwarranted, as you claim, then there is certainly no reason for the Committee on House Administration to be moving forward with such an outrageous request to unseat the legitimately elected Congresswoman. Indeed, Iowa prides itself on having safe and secure elections, and the state itself has not indicated in any way that it has questions about its November 2020 election. Were the state to have concerns even after the extensive recounts, it is more than capable of evaluating the election it conducted.
As it stands, Congresswoman Miller-Meeks’s failed opponent not only lost; she lost in such a clean race that the Hart Campaign did not even attempt to seek the legal remedy in the judicial system, as provided under Iowa law. This failure to follow through with the statutorily provided process to have any claims evaluated before an independent panel of judges underscores that the Hart Campaign does not have a case to make. If this were truly about who won the election, the courts would be involved – the courts have been thrust aside, not even consulted. This matter should be left to independent judges, not partisan politicians. This is not about what the American people want; this is about what you want.
The fact that you are willing to overturn an election for your own political expediency is astonishing, disheartening, and sickening. Additionally, you, Madam Speaker, sent a letter to Congresswoman Miller-Meeks on January 3, 2021, congratulating her on her “election as a Member of the 117th Congress.” In addition to being profoundly hypocritical, this is morally reprehensible. There is no cause to question the voters of Iowa; there is no legitimate reason to open an investigation into a certified election outcome you do not like.
As Members of Congress, we swore an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States. In your letter to Congresswoman Miller-Meeks, you remind her “of the great and humbling responsibility it is to serve our constituents as Members of the House of Representatives.” We expect the same from the Speaker – to serve. We call on you to stop this power grab and respect Iowans’ decision to elect Congresswoman Miller-Meeks.
Sincerely,
Congressman Steve Womack (AR-3) has represented Arkansas’s Third Congressional District since 2011. He is a member of the House Appropriations Committee.
womack.house.gov
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