Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., tweeted tonight that Electoral College ballots were rescued from the Senate floor before protesters were able to get to them.
“If our capable floor staff hadn’t grabbed them, they would have been burned by the mob,” he tweeted.
Electoral college ballots rescued from the Senate floor. If our capable floor staff hadn’t grabbed them, they would have been burned by the mob. pic.twitter.com/2JCauUIlvg
— Senator Jeff Merkley (@SenJeffMerkley) January 6, 2021
Sen. Tammy Duckworth told CBS News that a “Quick-thinking” Senate aide seized copies of the Electoral College certificates before they all evacuated the chamber.
The pro-Trump mob entered the capitol illegally, and various people ransacked the senate floor.
There are no clear answers yet on when the joint session will resume to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s win.
Leadership wants the situation to be brought under control first.
Congress had certified just two states — Alabama’s nine Electoral College votes and Alaska’s three — before the riots at the US Capitol broke out earlier today.
All 12 of those votes went to President Trump.
The process of certifying the electoral votes works alphabetically, with lawmakers starting with Alabama and then working through the states in alphabetical order.
There are 538 electoral votes in total, one for each congressperson and senator plus three for Washington, DC.
After the riots broke out, Congress went into recess and the Capitol went in lockdown.
At least 13 people were arrested amid the siege of the US Capitol by Pro-Trump rioters, Metropolitan Police Department Chief Robert Contee said Wednesday.
“We were looking at just above, just above 13 arrests, I should add very important note here that none of the arrest that occurred, were of DC residents, all the individuals who were arrested. All were from out of, out of the area,” he said.
Contee said several officers are being treated for injuries and authorities have confiscated several weapons as riots have unfolded outside the US Capitol.