The lead figure from the House Freedom Caucus proposes that North Carolina's Legislature might designate electors prior to the completion of vote counting.
Responding to a discussion by a supporter of former President Trump who suggested that North Carolina's Republican-led legislature could potentially assign its electoral votes to Trump due to complications from Hurricane Helene, Congressman Andy Harris of Maryland replied, "That sounds logical."
But he questioned, "How do you apply this logic to other states? Otherwise, it seems like a power grab." He then clarified, "As for North Carolina, I see its validity. Many voters might not be able to cast their ballots, which could potentially sway the state's outcome."
The speaker, Ivan Raiklin, who had previously spread false claims about the 2020 election being rigged, presented his argument during a meeting on Thursday. He argued that Hurricane Helene had damaged several counties in the west, displaced some ballots, and hampered the postal service. Therefore, he suggested, North Carolina's legislators could decide the election's outcome. Raiklin shared a video of his presentation and Harris' comments on social media platform X.
Raiklin used the Constitution's Article II Section I Clause II as his basis for his argument, stating that each state is responsible for selecting its electors. Earlier in his presentation, Raiklin labeled this option as something legislators could use when they were "required to rectify" election issues.
"How can we ensure that 25% of the state is re-enfranchised? You convene a joint session by the House speaker invitation, followed by the Senate majority leader's call, and then distribute your 16 electoral votes in North Carolina," Raiklin explained.
Congressman Harris issued a statement to CNN on Friday, claiming that the conversation had been misrepresented, but failed to challenge the idea itself.
"Every legitimate vote should be counted," his statement said.
When CNN asked about ideas proposed by right-wing activists to assign electors to Trump regardless of vote counts, the executive director of North Carolina's election board dismissed the notion as illegal.
"What these activists are suggesting is a violation of the law," Karen Brinson Bell said.
Despite fears that Hurricane Helene could discourage turnout in western North Carolina, data from the state's election board shows that voter turnout has actually increased by 0.5% in the affected areas compared to 2020. USPS also issued a statement confirming that all North Carolina processing facilities and most retail locations were operational.
Republican officials have also expressed skepticism about the idea.
"It makes no sense whatsoever to preemptively decide the election outcome, which is both impractical and ill-informed," North Carolina representative Patrick McHenry told reporters.
North Carolina chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, Richard Hudson, also weighed in, stating, "My priority is to get North Carolinians to the polls to support Donald Trump and expand our majority in the House."
Vice President Kamala Harris reacted to the congressman's comments, calling on leaders to respect the importance of fair elections.
"Elected leaders should uphold the sanctity of free and fair elections, which are fundamental to our democracy," she said.
The top Democrat on the House Administration Committee, Joe Morelle of New York, condemned Harris' comments, stating, "The Republican Party is openly advocating for North Carolina's electoral votes to be given to Donald Trump without an election, which would deny voters their right to choose the president. This is a dangerous and un-American scheme."
During his presentation, Raiklin stated, "My goal is to provide people with options and to expose the enemy's most dangerous tactics. These strategies can be used to counter any manipulations they might attempt." Raiklin suggested that other state legislatures could also assign their electors to Trump, regardless of the vote count, to guarantee the re-election of the Republican nominee.
Raiklin's name emerged during congressional hearings related to the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol due to his distribution of a memo known as the "Operation Pence Card." This memo argued that then-Vice President Mike Pence had the power to block the certification of the 2020 election results.
In the context of the discussion about North Carolina's electoral votes, Ivan Raiklin proposed that politics could potentially play a role in the decision-making process, as he suggested that legislators could decide the election's outcome based on Hurricane Helene's impact. Following this, North Carolina representative Patrick McHenry expressed his skepticism about this idea, stating that it is both impractical and ill-informed to preemptively decide the election outcome in politics.
