California Republicans who contested election results would be banned from Assembly under bill

Members of Congress who voted against certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election could be banned from the California Assembly floor under a new bill introduced Thursday by Assemblyman Marc Levine, D-Greenbrae.

The resolution would permanently ban the 147 members of Congress who objected to the election results in Arizona or Pennsylvania, two swing states that went to Biden.

Among those who voted not to certify results in those states are seven California Republicans: Rep. Ken Calvert, Corona; Rep. Mike Garcia, Santa Clarita; Rep. Darrell Issa, El Cajon; Rep. Doug LaMalfa, Richvale; Rep Devin Nunes, Tulare; Rep. Jay Obernolte, Big Bear Lake; and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Bakersfield.

Levine’s office said in a press release that the actions by those members of Congress are inconsistent with the “principles of our democracy and the oath of office each of these individuals took to protect and defend the United States Constitution.”

“The California State Assembly Chambers is a sacred shrine of our democracy,” Levine said in a statement. “Access to the floor of the State Assembly is a privilege, a solemn space, whose actions require respect and adherence to our democratic values and the rule of law.”

Former Assembly members are typically allowed unfettered access to the floor out of deference to their service. Levine’s resolution would explicitly ban the former state legislators, now members of Congress, who voted to overturn the 2020 presidential election, including McCarthy, LaMalfa, and Obernolte, who all previously held seats in the Assembly.

“The 147 Members of Congress who objected to the results of the 2020 Electoral College not only defied the will of the American voters, they defied their oath to the US Constitution,” added Levine. “Permanently banning these 147 Members of Congress from access to the floor of the State Assembly Chamber is a modest action, but an important one to protect the sanctity of our representative democracy, our democratic institutions and reaffirm our allegiance to the Constitution and rule of law.”

Harmeet Dhillon, a California attorney and Republican National Committeewoman, disparaged the measure on Twitter.

“Why the heck would they want to go to the Assembly floor?” she tweeted. “[McCarthy] and some others left that mess behind many years ago. It’s like me going to the places I used to work, and left. No thanks!”

Assembly Republican Leader Marie Waldron, R-Escondido, said such a measure is a distraction from bigger issues like unemployment benefits and vaccine distribution.

“Since it’s doubtful any of the members of Congress targeted by this resolution are even planning to come on the Assembly floor, this is merely a do-nothing resolution at a time when the Legislature needs to solve real problems,” Waldron said in a statement.

This story was originally published February 4, 2021 at 1:13 PM.