News / Politics

US Congress certifies Trump win despite objections by Democrats

Saturday, 07 January 2017 2:11 AM [ Last Update: Saturday, 07 January 2017 10:33 AM ]

US Vice President Joseph Biden, reacts to an objection while presiding over the counting of the electoral votes from the 2016 presidential election, during a joint session of Congress, in Washington, DC, January 6, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

The US Congress has certified Donald Trump’s presidential victory despite objections by Democratic lawmakers.

Lawmakers from both chambers of Congress convened on Friday to formally count the Electoral College votes of Trump and his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.

With Vice President Joe Biden presiding over the proceedings, the new Congress confirmed the results of the Electoral College’s 304-227 vote in favor of Trump, officially declaring the property developer as the 45th American president.

The otherwise routine session to tally the electoral votes was time and again interrupted by Democratic lawmakers who raised numerous objections during the process.

However, since most of the objections were not endorsed by a member of both the House and Senate as required by the law, Biden ruled them out.

Representative Jim McGovern, for example, raised the first objection to Trump’s victory by bringing up the alleged Russian meddling in the vote as well as some instances of voter fraud that he said occurred across America on November 8.

Biden ruled the objection “out of order” since McGovern was not supported by any of the senators.

Freshman Democratic Representatives Jamie Raskin and Pramila Jayapal were also shut down by Biden after trying to make their cases.

Additionally, Representatives Barbara Lee, Maxine Waters, Sheila Jackson Lee and Raúl Grijalva also tried to makes their protests heard.

“There is no debate, and if it's not signed by a senator the objection cannot be entertained,” Biden told Jeyapal.

Three outside protesters were also removed from the venue after shouting “voter suppression.”

At some point, Biden tried to end the protests by jokingly saying “It is over,” prompting laughter and cheers from the GOP.

Hours before the vote, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi voiced support for the objectors, saying she hoped they can make their messages heard although she knew they would change nothing.

The Electoral College’s voting session last month saw similar failed attempts by Democratic and Liberal voters to break Trump’s electoral support and reduce it to less than the 270-vote threshold for presidency.

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