Two peas in an election conspiracy-filled pod  – WisPolitics

MADISON, Wis. — Tuesday night, Donald Trump once again refused to acknowledge his election loss, doubling down on election lies about the 2020 results here in Wisconsin, something that Wisconsin Republican Derrick Van Orden has helped him spread in the four years since Trump’s defeat.

After Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss, Derrick Van Orden shouted election lies to anyone who will listen, traveling to the United States Capitol on January 6th and later penning an op-ed defending his presence at the riot. As Donald Trump doubles down on his lies and continues undermining our democracy, Derrick Van Orden is marching in lockstep alongside him.

Like Donald Trump, Derrick Van Orden has a long record attacking our democracy:

• Derrick Van Orden lied and tried to cover up the fact that he was present during the January 6th attack on the United States Capitol despite having been photographed behind police lines during the insurrection.
   
• Derrick Van Orden falsely claimed there was “a tremendous amount of voter fraud” in the 2020 presidential election.
   
• Derrick Van Orden continued supporting efforts to overturn the 2020 election after the insurrection, writing an op-ed defending his attendance at the Stop the Steal rally on January 6th.
   
• Derrick Van Orden has repeatedly ignored questions from reporters about his role in January 6th and bends over backwards to avoid answering for his attacks against our democracy.
   
• Derrick Van Orden baselessly claimed that mail-in ballots resulted in voter fraud, attacking a safe and secure voting method.

“For years, Derrick Van Orden has parroted Donald Trump’s election lies, sowing doubt in our elections and undermining the core of our democracy,” said Democratic Party of Wisconsin Deputy Communications Director Haley McCoy. “It’s clear Donald Trump has found a kindred, election-denying soul in Derrick Van Orden—and clearer still that western Wisconsin deserves better than them both. All of this begs the question: will Derrick Van Orden accept the election results this time around? Or is he going to storm our nation’s capitol again if his guy loses?”