Washington, Jan. 6, 2021 A joint session of Congress on Wednesday to certify the U.S. presidential election – normally a procedural affair – turned into a partisan showdown as allies of President Donald Trump mounted a last-ditch effort to overturn his loss.
Some Republican lawmakers objected to Congress certifying president-elect Joe Biden’s victory over Trump in the U.S. state of Arizona, the first of several expected challenges to state results.
The highly unusual move broke up the joint session, a typically routine step in confirming which candidate won the presidential election, and prompted both chambers to withdraw to debate the challenge for two hours.