Former US President Donald Trump is charged with allegedly plotting to overthrow the 2020 election results. Central to this indictment is the figure of Mike Pence, the former Vice President, whose actions during the crucial events in January 2021 are detailed.
Pence was meant to carry out a ceremonial task at the Capitol on January 6, 2021 – the certification of the November 2020 presidential election results, which saw Democrat Joe Biden win over Trump. However, as the indictment claims, Trump and six other individuals tried to convince Pence not to validate the results based on unproven allegations of electoral fraud.
Notwithstanding the turbulent four years at Trump’s side, Pence declined to comply.
Pence’s Testimony and the Implications for Trump
The special counsel, Jack Smith, presented a 45-page indictment against Trump. Throughout this narrative filled with intricate accounts of private calls and conversations, Pence features prominently, with mentions of his “contemporaneous notes.”
The indictment narrates several instances of Trump pressurizing Pence to meddle with the 2020 election results in the days preceding January 6, even on Christmas Day 2020. Trump’s attempts to sway Pence intensified when Pence expressed his opposition to a lawsuit to grant him the power to reject or return votes during the January 6 certification.
Following the violent insurrection incited by enraged Trump supporters on January 6, Pence and congressional leaders continued to declare Biden the victor. Pence, now a 2024 Republican presidential nomination candidate, pointedly criticized Trump’s actions leading up to the January 6 attack in a Tuesday statement.
While Pence’s stand has not won favour among the party’s base, the indictment against Trump is a stark reminder of the importance of upholding the Constitution over personal agendas. As the case unfolds, the role of Mike Pence in this extraordinary indictment is bound to be closely examined.
*With additional news input from Reuters
