2020 election and the Electoral College: What happens now?

As the 2020 presidential election wears on and former Vice President Joe Biden takes a more commanding lead, electors from each state will prepare to cast their votes on Dec. 14.

Votes are still being counted in key battleground states, but as soon as the count is complete and official, documents are prepared and electors, of which there are a total of 538 nationwide, will convene in their home states to cast their votes next month.

“There are laws on the books that require those presidential electors to cast their official electoral votes for the candidate who won the popular vote in the state,” said Adav Noti, senior director for trial litigation with the Campaign Legal Center in a Friday Zoom call.

To win a presidential election, a candidate must secure 270 electoral votes, with each state allotted votes largely based on population.

In most states, if the electors, who are nominated by political parties, deviate from that vote they are automatically removed and replaced, said Noti.

Some states impose a hefty financial penalty for “faithless electors.” Noti said deviations among electors are “exceedingly rare.”

A tie of 269 electoral votes for each candidate can occur, in which case the newly elected House of Representatives would decide the fate of the presidency with each state voting as a unit, as required by the Constitution.

Just before electors meet on Dec. 14, there is a Dec. 8 deadline by which all state recounts and court contests over presidential election results must be completed — a deadline the Trump administration is sure to memorize as it continues to pile on mounting litigation.

Noti said that when electoral votes are counted in a joint session of Congress on Jan. 6, an objection by a member of the House and Senate can be filed, however, the objection could only stand for two possible reasons.

One is if the electors were not lawfully or chosen or if their ballots were not lawfully cast, “It’s kind of a little hard to imagine what that would would look like,” said Noti.

Finally, Inauguration Day will come on Jan. 20. At noon on that day, power is transferred to the president-elect, regardless of his physical location or whether there is a concession by the losing candidate, said Noti.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/36bPKN9