Safe Harbor Deadline: As of Now, Trump’s Lawsuits Have No Remedy



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Legal disputes surrounding the presidential elections must be resolved by December 8, and the results from the states are now considered “final.” But Trump continues to fight.

“Nothing but speculation and presumption”: Donald Trump suffers defeat after defeat in court.

Photo: Jonathan Ernst (Reuters)

Donald Trump won’t admit his loss to Joe Biden for a long time, he probably never will. But in his efforts to overturn the outcome of the court elections, the outgoing US president suffered a decisive setback on Tuesday.

That came with Safe Harbor Day to be done, which fell on December 8 of that election year: All election results certified by the states up to that date have a «Safe haven» reached. This means that if Congress counts the votes of the electorate on January 6, it must in any case adhere to the results certified before December 8 – these count as «final».

All of this is regulated in the Electoral Counting Law, a complicated 1887 federal law that was a reaction to the chaotic presidential election of 1886. In a normal election year, Safe Harbor Day comes and goes without warning. This year, however, the date has taken on a new meaning as Trump and his allies went to court in every state to contest the election.

“The train left”

All subsequent attempts in this direction are considered useless after December 8. Enough states have already certified their results and nominated their constituencies for Biden to receive the required majority of 270 votes in the Electoral College.

What looks like whether Trump continues to go to court despite the deadline was shown Monday in Michigan. A court dismissed another lawsuit filed by Trump’s camp in late November, two days after the state had already certified the results. «The train left»Judge Linda Parker wrote referring to the certification.

The allegations that votes for Trump were rejected or converted into votes for Biden are anyway «nothing but speculation and conjecture». Plaintiffs are primarily concerned with «the faith of citizens in the democratic process and their confidence in our system of government» undermine.

State calls

Yet none of this stops Trump from continuing his fight. As the «Washington Post» reported, Trump last called the Republican Speaker of the Pennsylvania Parliament twice and asked for his help in changing the outcome in the state politically. But this told Trump that the legislature cannot simply ignore the outcome of the election and appoint its own constituency.ornnme.

The next deadline on Biden’s path to the presidency is December 14. On this day, the electorate in the states meets and votes formally, bound by the will of the voters. The results will be sent to Washington the same day.

The last step takes place on January 6 in Congress, where the House of Representatives and the Senate count the votes in a joint session. If a candidate obtains 270 electoral votes, the president of the Senate, currently Vice President Mike Pence, proclaims him the new president.

One last maneuver in January

This act is also actually ceremonial in nature. Trump’s camp wants to use it as a gateway for a final maneuver. Individual members of Congress have the option to object to the results of their respective states if the objection is signed by at least one member of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Several Republican deputies have already announced the appropriate steps. If necessary, the president will also seek a senator to participate.

But that won’t change anything about Trump’s defeat. To simply erase the votes of a state’s electorate, which has never happened before, both houses of congress would have to give their approval. That’s highly unlikely in the case of the Republican-run Senate, and is even ruled out in the case of the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives.

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