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In a flurry of competence seen infrequently on Capitol Hill in recent months, the electoral college votes of the 2024 presidential election were certified Monday during a joint session of congress with no concerns raised and no violence erupting. This makes President-elect Donald Trump’s election win official.
Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance won 312 electoral votes to Vice President Kamala Harris and Tim Walz’s 226 electoral votes.
U.S. Representative Teresa Leger Fernández issued a statement about the day’s events and a remembrance of the same event that devolved into violence four years ago.
“Today, Jan. 6, 2025, Congress peacefully and quickly certified the Presidential election,” Leger Fernandez said in a press release. “January 6th should be a day of celebration—a day to honor our democracy, New Mexico’s Statehood, and the tradition of Día de los Reyes Magos, the Day of Epiphany. Instead, it will forever be remembered for the violent attack on our Capitol by a mob incited by Donald Trump, attempting to overturn the will of the people. We must never forget the assault on our democratic institutions or the bravery of those who defended them. Let this day serve as a solemn reminder of the fragility of our democracy and our unwavering commitment to protect it.”
U.S. Senators Ben Ray Luján and Martin Heinrich issued statements following the certification and the anniversary of the 2021 Capitol riot.
“As I have done throughout my time in Congress, I fulfilled my constitutional duty and voted to certify the results of the presidential election. I will always defend our democratic values, support the certification of free and fair elections, and uphold the will of the American people,” Luján said in a press release. “Today also marks a solemn day in our nation’s history, where four years ago, a violent assault took place on the Capitol and our brave law enforcement officers in an attempt to disrupt the peaceful transition of power. But our democracy – and our resolve – did not break. I am thinking of the law enforcement officers who defended the Capitol and the officers who lost their lives in the line of duty. We will never forget them. As Americans, we must come together to protect, defend, and uphold our democracy – today and always.”
Heinrich also commemorated Jan. 6, 2021.
“Four years ago today, our democracy was pushed to the brink by rioters who violently forced their way into the U.S. Capitol to try and stop the certification of a free and fair election. Instigated and directed by President Trump, these same rioters would go on to attack and injure a number of U.S. Capitol Police officers,” Heinrich said in a press release. “Despite their efforts, and thanks to the bravery of U.S. Capitol Police officers, D.C. Metro Police officers, National Guardsmen, and Capitol staff, our democracy did not fall that day… Just as it did on January 6, 2021, today Congress upheld its constitutional duty and affirmed the will of the American people by certifying the results of the 2024 presidential election. The reality is: we must always put country over party — and our democracy over any one person’s self-interest or ego.”
Four years ago, the electoral college vote was interrupted by rioters who breached the Capitol building. It left five people dead, including law enforcement, injured many and resulted in more than 1,500 convictions, including disgraced former Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, who remains ineligible to hold any public office due to his behaviors on Jan. 6, 2021 unless Trump pardons him.
Newly re-elected Rep. Melanie Stansbury, a Democrat representing the 1st Congressional District, held a press call after the vote where she called the possibility for Jan. 6, 2021 defendant pardons “damaging.”
“I believe strongly that one of the hallmarks of our democracy is not just the peaceful transfer of power, but that nobody is above the law, whether that’s people who commit acts of vandalism and violence within our communities, against our federal property or acts of insurrection at the highest levels, including the former president soon to be next president,” Stansbury said. “I think that President Trump’s messaging around his intent to pardon the insurrectionists is damaging to our democracy. It’s damaging to faith in American institutions. It’s damaging to the rule of law, and it’s damaging to holding people personally responsible for committing crimes and violating the law… history will remember it for exactly what it was, which was a direct attack on the Capitol in an effort to overthrow a free and fair election.”
