Electors in the USA vote for presidents

Important formality

Electors in the USA vote for presidents

One day before the electors vote on the next US president and thus seal a formality, Donald Trump gives a long press conference. He remains vague on many key issues.

The official inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump is getting a little closer with today’s vote by the 538 electors in the US states. Electors award their votes based on the results of the November 5 presidential election, so there are no surprises to be expected – the process is purely a formality. The Republican Trump has 312 voters, while his defeated Democratic opponent Kamala Harris has 226 voters.

Each elector receives his or her own ballot paper, which, including a signature, is sent to Vice President Harris in her capacity as President of the US Senate. Copies go to the state secretary of state, the presiding judge of the county where the electors meet, and the U.S. National Archives in Washington. The official result will not be announced in Congress until January 6th, and the 47th President of the United States will be sworn in two weeks later.

Trump clearly won the election against Harris in November. Not only was he able to win in all crucial swing states, but he was also the first Republican since George W. Bush in 2004 to receive an absolute majority of the popular vote.

While the “Popular Vote” reflects the total number of votes of all voters across the country, the majority in the electoral college is crucial for election victory. This system is based on the complicated “winner take all” principle – which means that a US president can be elected even if he received fewer votes nationwide than his opponent.

The electoral process will be formally concluded with the inauguration of the new president on January 20th. At a solemn ceremony in front of the Capitol in Washington, Trump will take his oath of office (“Inauguration”).

At the beginning of the week, Trump used his first extensive press conference since the election to answer questions from reporters about domestic and foreign policy issues. His answers sometimes seemed disorganized – he often digressed, repeated himself and inserted personal anecdotes. The president-elect spoke at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, among other things…

In the congressional elections in the USA, which took place at the same time as the presidential election, the Republicans secured a majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. This gives Trump a powerful starting position for implementing his political agenda. It remains unclear whether he will coordinate more closely with leading Republicans or – as in the past – pursue a more impulsive and independent line.