Watch live as Congress votes on election results, and what to expect from NC lawmakers
Follow developments in the violence at the U.S. Capitol here and here.
Congress meets Wednesday for its traditional Electoral College vote count and to certify Joe Biden as the next president of the United States.
Typically a mere formality in the presidential election process, Wednesday will be a final chance for Republicans supporting President Donald Trump to register their objections and debate the outcome and processes of the 2020 election.
You can watch live here this afternoon:
The election results have been certified in all 50 states and the District of Columbia and the Electoral College has voted. Biden won 306 Electoral College votes to Trump’s 232.
How it will work
More than 100 Republicans in the U.S. House and at least 13 Republican senators plan to object to the Electoral College tally in at least one state. As many as six states — Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — could have objections.
In order for an objection to be in order, it must be written and signed by one House member and one senator.
Trump asked Wednesday morning that Vice President Mike Pence, who will preside over the event, send the votes back to the states. Many argue that Pence does not have anything more than a ceremonial role at the proceedings.
“States want to correct their votes, which they now know were based on irregularities and fraud, plus corrupt process never received legislative approval. All Mike Pence has to do is send them back to the States, AND WE WIN. Do it Mike, this is a time for extreme courage!” Trump tweeted.
Protests in support of Trump are happening in Washington.
Schedule of events
Here is a look at how the day could unfold:
At 1 p.m., the joint session begins in the House of Representatives. Less than 10 minutes later, Pence will hand the first state certificate (Alabama, which comes first alphabetically) to the teller, who reads and tallies the vote.
At Arizona, which comes third, Pence could recognize a Republican lawmaker’s objection. If it is in order — signed by a senator and representative — then the House and Senate would separate and debate for up to two hours on the objection.
After the two hours of debate, during which members are permitted to speak for no more than five minutes, each chamber will vote whether to sustain the objection. It takes a majority in each chamber to sustain the objection and not certify the votes from that state.
Once that objection is dealt with, then the roll call of the states continues. If there is another objection, the same process happens again — with two hours of debate and a vote on that objection.
It is extremely unlikely for any objection to be sustained, since Democrats have the majority in the U.S. House and at least two dozen Republican senators have indicated they will vote to certify the election results.
Each objection could take between three and four hours to handle, so the process could stretch late into the night or into Thursday.
When all the states’ certificates have been opened and tallied, Pence will be given the results of the count and he will read them and announce the final results.
How North Carolina’s delegation plans to vote
Republicans:
• Will vote to certify: Sens. Richard Burr and Thom Tillis
• Will object to at least one state: Reps. Madison Cawthorn, Ted Budd, David Rouzer, Richard Hudson, Greg Murphy, Dan Bishop and Virginia Foxx
• Have not announced publicly: Rep. Patrick McHenry
For more North Carolina government and politics news, listen to the Domecast politics podcast from The News & Observer and the NC Insider. You can find it on Megaphone, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts.
This story was originally published January 6, 2021 at 10:51 AM.
