By Doina Chiacu
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A massive winter storm moving across the United States will not keep the U.S. Congress from meeting on Monday to formally certify Republican Donald Trump's election as president, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Sunday.
"The Electoral Count Act requires this on January 6 at 1 p.m. - so, whether we’re in a blizzard or not we’re going to be in that chamber making sure this is done," Johnson told Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures" in an interview.
Johnson said he hoped there would be full attendance despite the storm and that he had encouraged lawmakers to stay in the city.
Forecasts called for heavy snow and high winds from the Central Plains to the mid-Atlantic states, the National Weather Service said. Severe weather advisories were issued across the eastern half of the country, including blizzard warnings in parts of Kansas.
In Washington, mixed snow and sleet accumulations were expected to be between three and seven inches (7 to 18 cm), promising a difficult commute and possible closings of schools, government and businesses.
Bad winter weather can wreak havoc in the Washington metropolitan area, which has seen mild winters in recent decades and has at times been unprepared for accumulations of snow or ice. The city ordered public schools closed on Monday and school cancellations were also announced in several suburban Virginia counties. School systems in neighboring Maryland were likely to follow suit.
Members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives returned to Washington on Friday after the winter break and Republicans gathered on Saturday with Johnson to discuss legislative priorities. Republicans won control of both the chambers in November's election.
Other leaders stressed they were not contemplating a weather delay.
"No change to the schedule," said Lauren Fine, communications director for Republican House Majority Leader Steve Scalise.
The certification process, usually a formality, was upended four years ago when supporters of Trump violently stormed the U.S. Capitol in a bid to halt the transfer of power to Democrat Joe Biden, who won the 2020 election.
Trump has continued to falsely claim his 2020 defeat was the result of widespread fraud. Biden and the Democrats say they will honor the 2024 election results and proceed with certification.