Rep. Jody Hice (GA-10) voted to overturn the November 3 election results and to nullify the votes of over 35,000 Clarke County voters, of nearly 2,500,000 Georgia voters, and of over 80,000,000 American voters. His actions went beyond protected speech and voting decisions. On the morning of Jan. 6, Hice urged supporters to “FIGHT” and stated “This is our 1776 moment” hours before thousands of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol building in an attempt to overthrow an election, resulting in 5 deaths. 
Reflecting President Biden’s call for unity, the Athens-Clarke County Democratic Committee (ACCDC) feels it is important to listen to and work with Republicans to make life better for all Americans. Hice fanned flames with misinformation, intentionally or unintentionally helped to start a riot, and still objected to honoring election results after the attack. Section 3 of the 14th amendment to the U.S. Constitution is clear on the penalty for when a Congressman attacks the American institutions that unify us as a nation:
“No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress…under the United States, or under any state, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any state legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any state, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.”
On Jan. 21, the ACCDC released a petition to the Committee on House Administration and the Committee on Ethics to investigate Hice to determine if he violated his oath of office to uphold the Constitution or any Rules of the House of Representatives. We call for him to face sanction, up to and including removal from the House of Representatives. The petition received over 1,000 signatures in less than two weeks after release. Due to the large interest, we have extended the signature collection period until February 10 when the petition will be sent to the appropriate U.S. committees.