The U.S. Capitol was breached by supporters of President Donald Trump Wednesday morning as Congress met to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election, which was heavily contested by Trump with false claims of voter fraud.
Cable news channels turned to live coverage as protesters breached the Capitol building and congresspeople, including Vice President Mike Pence, began to be evacuated.
Watch a live feed below.
Hundreds of protesters, some dressed in full riot gear, marched on the Capitol, calling politicians “traitors” for doing their jobs and certifying President-elect Joe Biden’s win.
Capitol police officers in the House chamber told people they may need to duck under their chairs as protesters entered the building’s Rotunda, according to CNN.
In a statement before the session opened, Pence announced he would not stop Biden from becoming president, defying Trump’s fiercely held and completely unfounded claim that he won the election.
“It is my considered judgment that my oath…constrained me from claiming unilateral authority to determine which electoral votes should be counted and which should not,” Pence said.
“We cannot simply declare ourselves a national board of elections on steroids,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said. “The voters, the courts and the states have all spoken. They’ve all spoken. If we overrule them, it will damage our republic forever.”
Several Republican politicians, including Josh Hawley, Jim Jordan and Ted Cruz, voiced their support of delaying the election certification, giving credence to Trump’s unfounded claims of voter fraud. Shortly after Pence gaveled the Wednesday session into order, Republicans issued objections to certifying Arizona’s electoral votes. The joint session then ended, with the Senate withdrawing.