At least one centrist House Democrat is feeling uneasy about the review of a close congressional race in Iowa that could overturn a Republican’s state-certified victory.
Rep. Lou Correa, a California Democrat, broke ranks with fellow members of his party who have largely defended the House Administration Committee investigation into the razor-thin win by Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District that was affirmed by bipartisan state election officials.
Correa, who is a member of the Judiciary Committee, said he wants to “look at the facts” about “what motivates Congress to look at something that should be a state issue,” according to a CNN report on Thursday.
“I want to see what compelling reasons there are for the feds to get involved in this,” Correa added. “I think these are issues that right now are probably best left at the state level.”
He is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, a small group of centrist Democrats that has increased sway at times when the margin by which one party controls the House is very small.
PELOSI: HOUSE COULD UNSEAT IOWA REPUBLICAN WHO NARROWLY WON RACE
Democratic candidate Rita Hart asked the Democratic-led House to investigate her narrow loss to Miller-Meeks, which was certified in November, claiming that there are 22 ballots that were legally cast but not counted. Her campaign argues that if these 22 ballots were to be counted, Hart would have a nine-vote victory.
Republicans pushed Democrats to dismiss Hart’s case, but the House Administration Committee voted last week to table a motion to dismiss Hart’s claim. The panel has six Democrats and three Republicans.
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Several Democrats defended the review and shrugged off GOP complaints about Hart turning to the House rather than the courts and accusations that they are being hypocrites because they expressed outrage when former President Donald Trump contested the results of the 2020 presidential election.
“For them to call anybody hypocritical about elections when two-thirds of them in the House voted against accepting the presidency of Joe Biden is — well, it’s just who they are,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told ABC over the weekend.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told Fox News last week that Democrats, who control the lower chamber 219-211, are trying to “steal” the election. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said on the Senate floor that the Democrats are trying to “overturn a state-certified election” in Iowa.
