Kamala Harris Presides Over Her Own Defeat, Certifying Trump's Victory Amid New Rules
Glenn Gilmour, 1/5/2025The 2024 certification saw Harris concede defeat to Trump, a stark contrast to 2021's chaos. New laws clarified the VP's ceremonial role, raising the bar for objections and ensuring a peaceful transition of power.
-- The congressional joint session to certify the 2024 Electoral College results on January 6 was a stark contrast to the chaotic and violent scene that unfolded four years earlier. This time, the proceedings were expected to be "much less eventful" as Donald Trump secured a decisive victory over Vice President Kamala Harris, with an electoral vote tally of 312-226.
In a twist of fate, Harris found herself presiding over the certification of her own defeat, just as Mike Pence had done after the violence subsided on January 6, 2021. "The vice president, as president of the Senate, presides over the session and declares the winner," the report stated, highlighting the constitutional role Harris was bound to fulfill.
The certification process, usually a routine affair every four years, serves as the final step in reaffirming a presidential election after the Electoral College officially elects the winner in December. "Under federal law, Congress must meet Jan. 6 to open sealed certificates from each state that contain a record of their electoral votes. The votes are brought into the chamber in special mahogany boxes that are used for the occasion."
In the wake of the January 6 insurrection and Trump's attempts to overturn the 2020 results, Congress tightened the rules for certification. The revised Electoral Count Act of 2022 "more explicitly defines the role of the vice president" after Trump aggressively pressured Pence to object to the Republican's defeat -- an action far beyond Pence's ceremonial duties.
"The updated law clarifies that the vice president does not have the power to determine the results on Jan. 6," the report emphasized, underscoring the changes made to prevent a repeat of the chaos that marred the 2021 certification.
As the appointed "tellers" from the House and Senate read each state's certificate aloud, a lawmaker could still object to a state's vote. However, the threshold for such objections has been significantly raised, requiring support from one-fifth of each chamber -- a far higher bar than the previous requirement of just one member from each chamber.
"If any objection reaches the threshold -- something not expected this time -- the joint session suspends and the House and Senate go into separate sessions to consider it," the report explained. In 2021, both chambers rejected challenges to the electoral votes in Arizona and Pennsylvania.
With Harris conceding and never disputing Trump's victory, the joint session was expected to be "the last official chance for objections, beyond any challenges in court." Once Congress certified the vote, the stage would be set for Trump's inauguration on January 20 -- a peaceful transition of power, in stark contrast to the turmoil that marred the previous transfer of presidential authority.
