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As Donald Trump continues to dispute his electoral defeat, the outgoing US president is approaching a series of deadlines that will further cement Joe Biden’s victory.
The US states are certifying their results over the next few weeks in a staggered process before December 14, the date on which the Electoral College formally meets to confirm the next president.
The lengthy timeline provides room for Trump to cast more doubt on the American people’s clear verdict and block the transition process to the Biden administration, even if he has little hope of overturning the outcome.
“As a technical matter, it is inconsequential if the president complains about the election outcome because it is not a fully decided process until all these steps have been taken,” said Russell Riley, co-chair of presidential oral history at the Miller Center. Program.
“The bigger picture is that it is a violation of all the expectations of the office and a violation of the fair play standards that make democracy possible,” he added.
Although the vote ended on November 3, each of the US states has its own processes to ensure a reliable count that generally involves various controls, laws that are specific to each state, and different time frames.
In Georgia, the deadline for certification is November 20. After completing an initial recount, the state has embarked on a manual recount of each presidential vote as part of an audit.
Timeline of Joe Biden’s inauguration
November 20
Deadline for vote certification in Georgia
November 23
Deadline for counties to submit vote totals in Pennsylvania
Start of 20-day window for Michigan panel to complete certification
November 30
Voting Certification Deadline in Arizona
December 1st
Deadline for vote certification in Nevada and Wisconsin
December 8
‘Safe Harbor’ date, promising states will count their electoral votes if they end on this deadline
December 14th
Voters meet separately in each state to cast votes in the Electoral College
January 6
Congress counts Electoral College votes in a session chaired by the current Vice President of the United States, Mike Pence
January 20
Presidential inauguration
Pennsylvania, where Trump has filed most of his lawsuits, has a November 23 deadline for counties to submit their final vote totals. The Trump campaign is seeking a court order to prevent the state from certifying its results.
In states that include Georgia, the results are certified by the secretary of state-elect, but the process is more idiosyncratic elsewhere, offering Trump a chance to put a wrench in the gears.
In Michigan, the results are certified by a four-person board that has two Democrats and two Republicans, raising the possibility of a deadlock. The board has a 20-day window from November 23 to complete the certification with at least three votes.
Michigan’s presidential results are typically certified on the first day of the window without complications, but Democrats are preparing to force the hand of the board if Republican members block or delay the process.
In a harbinger of that possibility, the Wayne County canvassing board, which includes the city of Detroit, stalled in certifying the results Tuesday afternoon after a 2-2 split between Democrats and Republicans, who made accusations of wrongdoing.
Republicans later reversed course late Tuesday night, allowing the board to unanimously certify the results on the condition that Michigan’s secretary of state conduct an audit of the unbalanced precincts.
“The courts have made it clear that [Michigan board’s] duty is ministerial, ”which means he has no discretion, said Mark Brewer, a Michigan Democratic election attorney with the Goodman Acker firm.
The final certification deadlines between the major battle states is December 1 for Nevada and Wisconsin. As each state gives its results the certification seal, the reality of Trump’s defeat will become even more stark.
The constant sequence of certifications will make it difficult for the Trump administration to continue to resist the beginning of the Biden transition, particularly once states that grant the president-elect a majority in the Electoral College have finalized their results. Federal law requires the release of transition funds when the election result is “apparent.”
Trump may request recounts in states where the margin is close, such as Wisconsin and Georgia, although these do not tend to change vote totals much. The Trump campaign said Wednesday that it will request a partial recount in two predominantly Democratic counties in Wisconsin, Milwaukee and Dane, and that it will transfer $ 3 million to cover the estimated costs.
In any case, Biden has a wide projected margin of 306 votes to 232 in the Electoral College, meaning that even extraordinary events that nullify his victory in one state would not undo his overall victory.
Those realities are a major reason why Trump’s legal actions are seen as having little to no hope of success.
“The campaign demands thus far do not present grounds to alter enough votes in enough states to change the outcome in the Electoral College,” said a Republican election attorney.
“It’s just not a close election,” added Ian Bassin, Obama’s former White House attorney and founder of Protect Democracy, a nonpartisan group.
The next steps after certification are a couple of deadlines in December. Congress has established the 8th as a “safe harbor” date that promises states that their Electoral College votes will be counted if it ends by this deadline.
Six days later, the electors meet separately in each state to cast their votes in the Electoral College. Voters will be either Democrats or Republicans, depending on who won the particular state, and they generally vote according to the popular vote of the state.
From there, the last stops are on January 6, when Congress counts the Electoral College votes in a session chaired by Mike Pence, the current Vice President of the United States, and the inauguration on January 20.
