Pence defies Trump, saying he has no ‘unilateral authority’ to reject electoral votes

But he concluded that he did not have the power to reject or include votes.

“It is my considered judgment that my oath to support and defend the Constitution constrains me from claiming unilateral authority to determine which electoral votes should be counted and which should not,” he wrote.

Trump has piled pressure on Pence to reject certification and help him hold on to power.

White House officials said Pence has spent days consulting constitutional experts and reading legal texts as he tried to navigate Trump’s increasingly angry demands. His challenge has been to protect his own integrity without alienating the millions of the president’s supporters that he would need for a 2024 run for the presidency.

With just minutes to go before the joint session was due to begin, Trump ratcheted up the pressure once again.

“If Mike Pence does the right thing, we win the election,” Trump told supporters who rallied in Washington.

However, in his three-page letter, Pence made clear that he would follow the Constitution rather than the commander in chief, while still allowing that members of Congress had the power to review and reject the results.

“While my role as presiding officer is largely ceremonial, the role of the Congress is much different,” he wrote, adding that the Electoral Count Act of 1887 gave members a procedure for dealing with problems.

“Given the voting irregularities that took place in our November elections and the disregard of state election statutes by some officials, I welcome the efforts of Senate and House members who have stepped forward to use their authority under the law to raise objections and present evidence.”