LEWISTON — The City Council will consider a resolution condemning the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and committing the city to upholding democratic institutions.

Councilor Alicia Rea, who introduced the resolution, said Monday that she believes it’s important for local governments to weigh in on the efforts to overturn the November election, which culminated in the violent storming of the Capitol building while congress was certifying Electoral College ballots.

She said she’d like city officials to condemn the message it has sent to election workers all the way down to the local level.

“I really feel for people like our city clerk, who worked so hard to make voting easy, accessible and safe,” she said.

Rea said Lewiston is going to have another election in November, and while it is hyperlocal compared to the presidential election, there needs to be support behind the more grassroots efforts to hold safe and accurate elections.

“These things happen on the local level, and advocating for the sanctity of elections is important,” she said. “I want people to know how their actions impact us on the local level. All politics is local.”

According to a City Council memo, the resolution will condemn “the acts of violence and insurrection demonstrated on Jan. 6, 2021, and commit the city to upholding democratic institutions and governing by example.”

The resolution also includes language stating a “peaceful and orderly transition” of the U.S. presidency has been maintained since 1797, and “state officials and courts have upheld that the November 2020 presidential election was conducted legally.”

“The Lewiston City Council values democratic institutions and their processes,” it states.

The City Council has not shied away from introducing resolutions relating to politics on a national and a local level.

In May, the council voted down a resolution that sought to urge Gov. Janet Mills to reconsider COVID-19 restrictions in Androscoggin County.

In June, on the heels of Black Lives Matter protests in Lewiston and across the nation, the council passed a resolution condemning racial profiling and excessive force by police and committing the Lewiston Police Department to achieving equality in its practices.

A month later, the council used a resolution to commit to a faster timeline for acquiring police body cameras, which have since been secured.

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