WASHINGTON, D.C. (KWWL) -- Iowa's Republican lawmakers are calling on the U.S. House of Representatives and House Committee on Administration to reject Democrat Rita Hart's appeal of the results in the Second Congressional District race.
Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst and Representatives-Elect Ashley Hinson and Randy Feenstra sent a letter Tuesday to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), Committee Chair Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) and Committee Ranking Member Rodney Davis (R-Ill.). The letter comprised all but one member of Iowa's incoming congressional delegation, Democratic Representative Cindy Axne.
The results show Hart losing to Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks by six votes. It's the closest U.S. House race since 1984. In the letter, the group says Hart's appeal under the Federal Contested Elections Act, "would create a dangerous precedent and should be rejected."
Hart announced earlier this month, after Iowa's election results were certified, that she would forgo further legal challenges in the state and appeal directly to the U.S. House of Representatives. A statement from the Hart campaign said the quick timeline for a state elections contest, known as a "contest court," wouldn't have allow enough time to review the legally cast ballots that were not considered in the recount process, which the campaign claimed included thousands of unexamined undervotes and overvotes. Under Iowa law, the contest court would have been expected to decide who won by December 8th.
Ultimately, the constitution gives the U.S. House and Senate the power to judge the elections of its own members. The process for contesting an election with the House under the Federal Contested Elections Act is complex. The burden of proof is on Hart to show the certified election results are not valid.
According to a 2016 procedural guide for contested elections in the House, Hart would have a chance to state her case for contesting the election, and Miller-Meeks will have a chance to respond. Both sides can use depositions and subpoena witnesses and documents.
The House Administration Committee could then conduct an investigation of its own, review election records or disputed ballots. The committee, which Democrats have a 6-3 majority on, would then file a report on its findings to the full house and recommend actions for the Second Congressional District race. A simple majority would then vote on it.
A 2010 report by the Congressional Research Service found most contested election cases have been dismissed. Between 1933 and 2009, 107 contested election cases came before the House. In three cases, the candidate who contested the results won.
The most recent case involved then-incumbent Indiana Democratic Representative Frank McCloskey in 1984. Despite losing in the certified election results, McCloskey appealed to the Democratically-controlled House. The house vote to give McCloskey the win after a house committee recounted the votes.
"The House of Representatives and the Senate have wisely in the past required losing candidates to exhaust their remedies under state law before contesting an election. The House of Representatives and the House Administration Committee should follow these precedents and dismiss any contest filed by Ms. Hart," the letter reads.
The full letter from Grassley, Ernst, Hinson, and Feenstra can be found here:
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December 16, 2020 at 05:30AM
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Iowa Republicans urge US House to reject Hart's appeal in 2nd Congressional District race - kwwl.com
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