evidence: By — Associated Press Associated Press By — Aaron Glantz, The Center for Investigative Reporting Aaron Glantz, The Center for Investigative Reporting Leave a comment 0comments Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/read-pences-full-letter-saying-he-cant-claim-unilateral-authority-to-reject-electoral-votes Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Read Pence’s full letter saying he can’t claim ‘unilateral authority’ to reject electoral votes Politics Jan 6, 2021 1:43 PM EDT WASHINGTON (AP) — Defying President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday that he does not have the power to discard electoral votes that will make Democrat Joe Biden the next president on Jan. 20. Pence said in a statement issued minutes before he was to begin presiding over a joint session of Congress to count those votes that it was "my considered judgement 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." In the days before the joint session, Trump has pressured his vice president to toss electors from battleground states that voted for Biden to overturn the will of voters in a desperate and futile bid to undo President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the November election.