2020: Allen Claimed There Were “Glitches” In Dominion’s Voting Machine Software And That The Election Results Should Be Re-Tabulated Because Absentee Ballot Counting Was Rushed. According to ABC 6 WJBF, “She said recounting ballots is the state doing its due diligence in making sure it knows for sure who won the presidency in the Peach State. She told NewsChannel 6 the state Republican Party received calls to its hotline concerning voter fraud, something Congressman Rick Allen said he got calls about too. ‘There were complaints that they showed up to vote and they were told they had already voted. Some were turned away, some said ok well you said you hadn’t voted come on in and vote,’ Rep. Allen, (R) Georgia said. ‘Did they vote twice?’ And when it came to this election, Congressman Allen said Dominion, the software provider in many toss up states including Georgia, had glitches. He said, ‘This equipment was purchased for the sole purpose to hand count ballots in the event there were issues like this.’ Allen said absentee ballot counting was rushed too, another reason to re-tabulate the presidential race.” [ABC 6 WJBF, 11/11/20]
Allen Objected To Certifying Georgia’s Electoral College Vote, Claiming That He Was “Simply Representing My District.” According to ABC 6 WJBF, “As the Senate prepares to begin another impeachment trial, Allen says Georgia needs to focus on restoring election integrity. Many Republicans grew to doubt the state’s election system and process in 2020, pointing to voting equipment and the number of people who voted with absentee ballots. Allen and five other Georgia representatives objected to certifying the Electoral College’s vote. ‘I was simply representing my district. I’m the voice of the people. I can’t tell you how upset folks were about some of the things that happened in this election.’” [ABC 6 WJBF, 1/14/21]
11/8/20: Allen Signed Onto A Letter Calling For Attorney General William Barr To Investigate “Widespread Reports Of Irregularities” In The 2020 Election. According to a press release from Rep. Andy Biggs, “A coalition of 39 House Republicans on Saturday sent a letter to Attorney General William Barr, asking the Department of Justice to investigate allegations of potential voter fraud. According to the members, it's important for Americans to have ‘the utmost confidence’ in the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. […] While each state runs its own election process, the United States Department of Justice is ultimately responsible for the integrity of federal elections. The American people must have the utmost confidence that the outcome of the presidential election is legitimate. With widespread reports of irregularities, particularly in the vote counting process, it is time for you to use the resources of the Department to ensure that the process is conducted in a manner that is fully consistent with state and federal law. And, it is also important that the process be completely transparent, so that the American people will have full confidence in the result.” [Press Release – Rep. Andy Biggs, 11/8/20]
12/10/20: Allen Signed An Amicus Brief Asking The Supreme Court To Overturn The Results Of The 2020 Presidential Election In Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania And Wisconsin. According to ProPublica via the Wayback Machine, “More than half of the House Republican Caucus in the 116th Congress signed an amicus brief asking the Supreme Court to allow a lawsuit filed by the state of Texas seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — swing states where former Vice President Joe Biden defeated President Donald Trump. We’ve listed these members, 126 in all, below.” [ProPublica via Wayback Machine, 5/8/21]
HEADLINE: "Two Athens-Area Congressmen Are Among Those Who Texted Meadows About 2020 Election" [WUGA, 12/14/22]
Talking Points Memo Reported Messages In The Mark Meadows Communications Log “Show Allen Was Eager To Overturn The Election Based On Easily Debunked, Internet-Fueled Theories.” According to Talking Points Memo, "The texts Meadows provided to the committee are not necessarily a complete record of Allen’s correspondence with the chief of staff; however, the ones in the log show Allen was eager to overturn the election based on easily debunked, internet-fueled theories. For more information about the story behind the text log and our procedures for publishing the texts, read the introduction to this series.” [Talking Points Memo, 12/13/22]
Talking Points Memo Identified 27 Messages Allen Exchanged With Mark Meadows In Communications Meadows Turned Over To The House Select Committee That Investigated January 6th. According to Talking Points Memo, "Allen’s communications appeared in the 2,319 text messages that Trump’s former chief of staff, Mark Meadows, turned over to the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack. TPM has obtained Meadows’ text log, which includes 27 messages he exchanged with Allen. Meadows and the select committee have not responded to multiple requests for comment. Allen and his office also did not respond to multiple requests for comment." [Talking Points Memo, 12/13/22]
11/25/20: Allen Texted Meadows That He Had A Well-Placed, Anonymous “Source” Who Could Prove There Had Been “Fraud” In The Vote. According to Talking Points Memo, "Allen’s first appearance in the log came on Nov. 25, 2020, more than two weeks after the election was called for Joe Biden. In it, he told Meadows that he had a well-placed anonymous ‘source’ who could prove there had been ‘fraud’ in the vote." [Talking Points Memo, 12/13/22]
Allen Sent Meadows A YouTube Clip From A Romanian Organization Whether An Anti-Vaccine Activist Interviewed A Man Who Claimed To Be An Ex-Intelligence Operative Who Claimed Without Evidence That The Identities Of 50 Million Americans Had Been Stolen By Ukraine In 2009 And 2018 To Be Used For Voting In The 2020 Election. According to Talking Points Memo, "Allen then passed along some links that appeared to be related to the information about ‘high tech and foreign governments in collusion with Democratic Party’ from his supposed ‘source.’ However, rather than secret government documents or credible analysis, Allen’s evidence was simply a pair of links. The first was a news story describing a data breach that occurred with driver’s license records in Georgia in 2005. Allen’s second ‘wild’ link was a YouTube video from a Romanian organization. In that clip, an anti-vaccine activist interviewed a man who claimed to be an ex-intelligence operative. Without providing any hard evidence, the man said identities of ‘50 million’ U.S. citizens were stolen via Ukraine in 2009 and 2018 to be used for voting in the 2020 election as part of a ‘$100 billion’ plot involving illegal immigrants, blackmail and Romanian officials. It was an utterly fantastical scenario. The Romanian man in the clip had no explanation for how votes from roughly one-sixth of the total U.S. population would be fabricated without detection. But Allen seemed to find the wild scenario credible. He sent Meadows an annotation describing the claims in the YouTube clip." [Talking Points Memo, 12/13/22]
1/5/21: Allen Forwarded Mark Meadows Text Messages He Had With Georgia Secretary Of State Brad Raffensberger Where He Complained About Issues With Voting Machines In The Georgia Senate Runoff. According to Talking Points Memo, "The log includes another spate of messages from Allen and Meadows dated Jan. 5, 2021, the day before the election was due to be certified in Congress. That was also the day Georgia was holding a runoff election for its two Senate seats. In the messages, Allen indicated he was forwarding along a series of texts he exchanged with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. Georgia was a major focus for Trump and his allies in the aftermath of the election. Trump’s efforts to overturn the vote there included calls where he leaned on Raffensperger and one of the secretary of state’s lead investigators tasked with reviewing the results. Based on the text log, Allen complained that there were issues with multiple voting machines for the runoff. He suggested Trump would be able to use this to fuel attacks on Raffensperger over the presidential result. ‘Bottom line Dominion machines down in multiple polling precincts in Columbia County my Republican Strong Hold. This should give the President the Ammo he needs to go after Raffensperger,’ Allen wrote." [Talking Points Memo, 12/13/22]
1/8/21: Allen Texted Mark Meadows Because He Felt Trump Needed Prayers For The Looming “Spiritual War.” According to Talking Points Memo, "After Jan. 5, there is one more text from Allen to Meadows in the log. It came on Jan. 8, 2021, two days after the violence at the U.S. Capitol. Allen felt Trump needed prayers for the looming ‘Spiritual War.’" [Talking Points Memo, 12/13/22]
2021: Allen Voted Against Finding Mark Meadows In Contempt Of Congress For His Refusal To Abide To A Congressional Subpoena To Investigate January 6th Capitol Attack. In December 2021, Allen voted against the resolution which would, according to Congressional Quarterly, “find Mark Meadows, former White House chief of staff to President Donald Trump, in contempt of Congress for refusal to comply with a subpoena issued by the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol. It would direct the speaker of the House to ‘take all appropriate action to enforce the subpoena’ and certify the committee report (H Rept 117-216) accompanying the contempt resolution to the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia for judicial action.” The vote was on passage. The House passed the resolution by a vote of 222-208. [House Vote 447, 12/14/21; Congressional Quarterly, 12/14/21; Congressional Actions, H.Res. 851]
Hours After Rioters Stormed The Capital, Allen Voted Against Officially Certifying The Results Of The 2020 Election. According to the New York Times, “When a mob of President Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol building on Wednesday, they forced an emergency recess in the Congressional proceedings to officially certify the results of the 2020 presidential election. The disruption came shortly after some Republican lawmakers made the first of a planned series of highly unusual objections, based on spurious allegations of widespread voter fraud, to states’ election results. The chambers were separately debating an objection to Arizona’s results when proceedings were halted and the Capitol was locked down. When the Senate reconvened at 8 p.m., and the House of Representatives an hour later, the proceedings — including the objection debates — continued, although some lawmakers who had previously planned to vote with the objectors stood down following the occupation of the Capitol. Plans to challenge a number of states after Arizona were scrapped, as well — but one other objection, to Pennsylvania’s results, also advanced to a vote. Here are the eight senators and 139 representatives who voted to sustain one or both objections.” [New York Times, 1/7/21]
Allen Said He Did Not Believe Trump “Had Any Idea” Riots Would Break Out After His “Stop The Steal” Rally. According to ABC 6 WJBF, “Allen does not believe President Donald Trump ‘had any idea’ riots would break out following his speech at the ‘Stop the Steal’ rally. Trump has not publicly taken responsibility for the violence. Allen points to House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s speech on the House floor Wednesday, in which he said, ‘The President bears responsibility’ for the attack on the Capitol.” [ABC 6 WJBF, 1/14/21]
After Voting Against Impeaching Trump In The Wake Of The January 6th Riots, Allen Said Trump Was “Innocent Until Proven Guilty.” According to ABC 6 WJBF, “When the House convened to impeach Trump for a historic second time Wednesday, Allen remained loyal to the President. ‘I believe everyone has the right to prove their innocence. It’s innocent until proven guilty. None of that happened in this impeachment process.’ 10 House Republicans broke rank, siding with Democrats to impeach the President on a single charge — ‘incitement of an insurrection.’ Several Republicans, including Allen, suggest moving forward with impeachment will further divide the country. ‘We need to bring the American people together. This trial in the Senate is not going to do that. It’s going to create more hostility.’” [ABC 6 WJBF, 1/14/21]
5/19/21: Allen Voted Against Forming A House Commission To Investigate The January 6th Insurrection At The Capitol. According to CNN, “Thirty-five House Republican broke ranks Wednesday evening to support legislation that would establish an independent commission to investigate the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol. The bill now moves to the Senate where it faces an uncertain fate as GOP resistance is growing. The GOP defections in the House showcased a significant break with Republican leadership in the chamber and former President Donald Trump, who had urged members to vote against the legislation.” [CNN, 5/19/21]
January 2021: Allen Called For A Bipartisan Commission To Do A “Complete Investigation” Of The Circumstances Surrounding January 6th. According to ABC 6 WJBF, “As a mob of people stormed the capitol on January 6, Georgia Congressman Rick Allen found himself inches from the violence. ‘I sit right by the door where the President comes in,’ Allen described. ‘All of a sudden, there was banging on the door, so we knew something was up. The first thing we did was find furniture to barricade the doors, which we were able to do. […] Allen does not believe President Donald Trump ‘had any idea’ riots would break out following his speech at the ‘Stop the Steal’ rally. Trump has not publicly taken responsibility for the violence. Allen points to House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s speech on the House floor Wednesday, in which he said, ‘The President bears responsibility’ for the attack on the Capitol. ‘We need a bipartisan commission to do a complete investigation, analyze what the President said and talk to witnesses,’ Allen says.” [ABC 6 WJBF, 1/14/21]