BREAKING: Pence will not block certification of Electoral College vote

"I hope Mike has the courage to do what he needs to do. And I hope he doesn't listen to the RINO and the stupid people that he's listening to," Trump said during his Washington, DC rally at the same time that Pence released his statement.

As Vice President, it is Pence's job to preside over the vote in Congress to verify the votes of the Electoral College. It was in that role that Trump and many of his supporters wanted him to call out the alleged voter fraud and ballot irregularities that have been the basis for the president's refusal to accept the results of the Nov. 3 general election.

Pence told Congress as he presided over that vote on Wednesday that he does not have the "unilateral authority to determine which electoral votes should be counted and which should not."

Pence concluded, "I will do my duty to see to it that we open the certificates of the Electors of the several states, we hear objections raised by Senators and Representatives, and we count the votes of the Electoral College for President and Vice President in a manner consistent with our Constitution, laws, and history. So Help Me God."

Pence was the last hope for Trump supporters who were intent on finding a way to investigate the allegations of voter fraud prior to the certification of the Electoral College, which will install Biden in the White House.

President Trump and his campaign attorneys have been fighting against certification of votes in several key states where concerns were raised over absentee-voting, which was ramped up in 2020 by a Democratic campaign to tell voters to stay home instead of voting in person over COVID contagion fears, as well as claims of fraudulent voting machines, and vote counting irregularities.

Trump tweeted his disappointment in Pence's statement, saying: "Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution, giving States a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not the fraudulent or inaccurate ones which they were asked to previously certify. USA demands the truth!"

Twitter added their label that "This claim of election fraud is disputed, and this Tweet can’t be replied to, Retweeted, or liked due to a risk of violence."

Trump supporters have been incredibly loyal throughout the campaign season, and even into Wednesday, where they gathered to rally in support of the departing president and hear him speak.

As Congress gathered to certify the vote, brawls broke out between Trump supporters and federal police. Trump supporters eventually broke into the Capitol and stopped the vote.

This is a breaking story and will be updated.