Electoral College Results as of December 15th. Image from Politico

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President-elect Joe Biden officially reached 270 Electoral College votes on December 14th, further solidifying his victory even though the outcome of the election has been known for weeks. Although the General Election took place on November 3rd, there is a long process to formalize the results including Electoral College votes on December 14th. Through this post, we provide key dates leading up to the 2021 Presidential Inauguration. 

December 8th, 2020

States selected and named electors by December 8th. The number of electors each state gets is equal to the number of members it has in Congress. Under the 23rd Amendment of the Constitution, the District of Columbia is allocated three electors and treated like a State for purposes of the Electoral College. There are 538 electors in total.

In most states, when a candidate wins the popular vote, they receive all of the state’s electoral votes. Two states, Maine and Nebraska, use an alternative method of distributing their electoral votes, called the Congressional District Method. Since electors are awarded to each state based on the number of House seats plus the number of Senate seats (always two), the congressional district method allocates one electoral vote to each congressional district. The winner of each district is awarded one electoral vote, and the winner of the state-wide vote is then awarded the state’s remaining two electoral votes.

December 14th  –  December 23rd, 2020

On December 14th, Electors reported to a designated place to vote by paper ballot in their respective states and the District of Columbia. It is a matter of law (3 U.S.C. §7) that the electors meet on the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December. That allows states to have enough time after Election Day, which is the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, to settle disputes over results. 

Electors can defect from the candidate they pledged to support and become “faithless electors.” However, this does not usually happen, and there are severe consequences for such electors. Thirty-three states and D.C. have laws or party regulations requiring their Electors to vote the same way as the popular vote. In some states, rogue electors may be replaced or subjected to penalties. Earlier this year, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously upheld laws across the country that punished or removed faithless electors. 

The votes for President and Vice President are counted, and the Electors sign six “Certificates of the Vote,” which are then sent by registered mail to various officials. One copy goes to the president of the U.S. Senate, a position reserved for the Vice President of the United States and will be officially counted in the Capitol on January 6th, two copies go to the state’s secretary of state, two copies go to National Archives and Records Administration and one copy, a backup, goes to the presiding judge in the district where the electors meet (3 U.S.C. §11). The certificates must be delivered to the designated officials by December 23rd.

If the certificates from any state have not been delivered by December 23rd, the President of the Senate, or in their absence the Archivist, is required to request the secretary of state or equivalent officer in that state to send one of the copies they hold to the President of the Senate by registered mail (3 U.S.C. §12, 13). The Code also directs them to send a messenger to the judge of the U.S. district court in the state directing the judge to transmit the certificate they hold by “hand of such messenger to the seat of government.” (3 U.S.C. §13)

January 6th, 2021

On January 3rd, the new 117th Congress is sworn into office. Three days later, on January 6th, at 1 pm, the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate hold a joint session to count the electoral votes. The Vice President presides as President of the Senate. The Vice President opens the certificates and presents them to four tellers, two from each chamber. The tellers read and make a list of the returns. When the votes have been ascertained and counted, the tellers transmit them to the Vice President. If one ticket receives 270 or more electoral votes, the President of the Senate announces the results.

Members of Congress may object to returns from any state as they are announced. Objections must be made in writing by at least one member of the House and one in the Senate. If the objection meets certain requirements, each chamber meets separately to debate the objection for a maximum of two hours. Afterward, each chamber votes to accept or reject the objection. Back in a joint session, the results of the respective votes are announced. Any objection to a state’s electoral vote has to be approved by both chambers in order for any contested votes to be excluded.

If neither presidential candidate accrues at least 270 electoral votes, the House would decide the election, based on the 12th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, by January 20th. If required, the House would elect the president, and the Senate the vice president. Each state delegation has one vote, and thus it takes 26 votes to win.

January 20th, 2021

Inauguration takes place on January 20th. Set by the 20th Amendment, each term of the President and Vice President expires at noon on January 20th in the year following the presidential election, regardless of who occupies the office. Since 1981, the ceremony has, with one exception, been held on the West Front of the Capitol. The Vice President takes the oath first, followed at noon by the President. The outgoing president then takes the traditional helicopter ride to return to civilian life.