A Pennsylvania Republican state committee’s verdict on whether to censure on Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) after the senator voted to convict former President Trump of “incitement of insurrection” was inconclusive after a Wednesday night meeting.
CNN reported Thursday that a source on the meeting’s Zoom call said that the more than four-hour meeting encountered technical difficulties when counting votes. According to CNN, the committee could possibly decide whether to take action against Toomey at a later date.
The Pennsylvania Republican state committee’s censure vote hiccup came on the heels of several GOP county committees across the commonwealth handing Toomey censure resolutions for daring to buck Trump during the former president’s second impeachment trial.
Three GOP county chairs told CNN the virtual meeting could have included a vote to formally censure Toomey.
Toomey isn’t the only Republican senator facing the wrath of state-level Trump loyalists.
Most of the six other GOP senators who joined Democrats in voting to convict Trump earlier this month — which include Sens. Richard Burr (R-NC), Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Ben Sasse (R-NE) — have also faced censures and primary challenges.
The handful of House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump for the second time last month have also dealt with the brunt of backlash of state-level Republicans in their respective states.
Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), the third-ranking House Republican, was censured by the Wyoming GOP after she and nine other Republicans voted to impeach Trump last month. Reps. Fred Upton (R-MI) and Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) were slapped with censures as well in the aftermath of their votes to impeach Trump.
