Push toward electoral college vote change continues as confirmation deadline approaches
buzzz worthy. . .
The due date for the final Electoral College (EC) vote from the 2016 presidential election is December 19. This vote will ascertain (i.e., officially confirm) the winner of the election. Donald Trump secured the most EC votes to become President of the United Stated on November 8 and expects to take the Oath of Office on January 20, 2017. However, millions of Americans protested the contentious win and are holding out hope that their efforts will persuade 538 electors to reverse their decision to elect Hillary Clinton who won the popular vote.
How President-elect Trump will lead has been a source of fear as his post election proposals and cabinet selections cause questions about an unprecendented shift in government and his interpretation of the Constitution. Because Trump has expressed a desire to work with Russia, selected cabinet members with extreme conservative views and refused to attend daily intelligence briefings among other things, he is deemed too dangerous to lead the nation. Speculation about his true intentions have run amuck.
People from all walks of life are banning together to stop waht they beleive is impending disaster for the U.S. Former presidential candidate Jill Stein unsuccessfully pushed for recounts in the states where there was the most skepticism about the votes, but Trump was found to be the winner in several states where there were doubts. In their latest effort to thwart Trump's victory, Change.org has released a letter to newspapers nationally urging electors to change their votes. Michael Moore, a staunch liberal, is also depending on the EC as a last ditch effort to turn around the decison to turn over the country to a leader with an intimidating vision for America's future, saying it is too dangerous to vote for Trump.
Still, according to an article on Vox.com, electing Clinton by EC votes is not feasible.
Following are key Electoral College dates:
The due date for the final Electoral College (EC) vote from the 2016 presidential election is December 19. This vote will ascertain (i.e., officially confirm) the winner of the election. Donald Trump secured the most EC votes to become President of the United Stated on November 8 and expects to take the Oath of Office on January 20, 2017. However, millions of Americans protested the contentious win and are holding out hope that their efforts will persuade 538 electors to reverse their decision to elect Hillary Clinton who won the popular vote.
How President-elect Trump will lead has been a source of fear as his post election proposals and cabinet selections cause questions about an unprecendented shift in government and his interpretation of the Constitution. Because Trump has expressed a desire to work with Russia, selected cabinet members with extreme conservative views and refused to attend daily intelligence briefings among other things, he is deemed too dangerous to lead the nation. Speculation about his true intentions have run amuck.
People from all walks of life are banning together to stop waht they beleive is impending disaster for the U.S. Former presidential candidate Jill Stein unsuccessfully pushed for recounts in the states where there was the most skepticism about the votes, but Trump was found to be the winner in several states where there were doubts. In their latest effort to thwart Trump's victory, Change.org has released a letter to newspapers nationally urging electors to change their votes. Michael Moore, a staunch liberal, is also depending on the EC as a last ditch effort to turn around the decison to turn over the country to a leader with an intimidating vision for America's future, saying it is too dangerous to vote for Trump.
Still, according to an article on Vox.com, electing Clinton by EC votes is not feasible.
Following are key Electoral College dates:
December 13, 2016
States must make final decisions in any controversies over the appointment of their electors at least six days before the meeting of the Electors. This is so their electoral votes will be presumed valid when presented to Congress.
Decisions by states’ courts are conclusive, if decided under laws enacted before Election Day.
December 19, 2016
The Electors meet in their state and vote for President and Vice President on separate ballots. The electors record their votes on six “Certificates of Vote,” which are paired with the six remaining Certificates of Ascertainment.
The electors sign, seal, and certify six sets of electoral votes. A set of electoral votes consists of one Certificate of Ascertainment and one Certificate of Vote. These are distributed immediately as follows:
- one set to the President of the Senate (the Vice President) for the official count of the electoral votes in January;
- two packages to the Secretary of State in the state where the electors met—one is an archival set that becomes part of the public record of the Secretary of State's office and the other is a reserve set that is subject to the call of the President of the Senate to replace missing or incomplete electoral votes;
- two packages to the Archivist—one is an archival set that becomes part of the permanent collection at the National Archives and Records Administration and the other is a reserve set that is subject to the call of the President of the Senate to replace missing or incomplete electoral votes; and
- one set to the presiding judge in the district where the Electors met—this is also a reserve set that is subject to the call of the President of the Senate to replace missing or incomplete electoral votes.
December 28, 2016
Electoral votes (the Certificates of Vote) must be received by the President of the Senate and the Archivist no later than nine days after the meeting of the electors. States face no legal penalty for failure to comply.
If votes are lost or delayed, the Archivist may take extraordinary measures to retrieve duplicate originals.
