The upcoming congressional joint session on January 6, 2025, to count electoral votes is expected to be far less dramatic than the certification process four years ago, which was interrupted by a violent mob attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election. This year, former President Donald Trump returns to office after winning the 2024 election, with Vice President Kamala Harris presiding over the certification of her own defeat.
The joint session, which occurs every four years, is a routine event in reaffirming the presidential election after the Electoral College has officially elected the winner in December. While usually a ceremonial occasion, the session is required by the Constitution and involves several distinct steps. If the electoral vote results were tied, the House would decide the presidency, with each state delegation casting one vote. However, this year’s results are decisive, with Trump securing 312 electoral votes to Harris’s 226, making a tie scenario highly unlikely.
In the wake of the chaotic events of January 6, 2021, Congress has introduced measures to strengthen the certification process. The revised Electoral Count Act, passed in 2022, clarifies the vice president’s role in certifying the results. This change comes after former President Trump pressured Vice President Mike Pence to object to the election results, a request Pence ultimately rebuffed. The updated law specifies that the vice president does not have the authority to alter or determine the results of the election.
Harris will follow in the footsteps of past vice presidents, such as Al Gore in 2001, who presided over the certification of the 2000 election that he narrowly lost to George W. Bush, and Joe Biden in 2017, who oversaw Trump’s victory. Both Gore and Biden faced objections from lawmakers but upheld the constitutional process.
The joint session itself unfolds in a structured manner. The presiding officer opens the certificates of electoral votes in alphabetical order by state, and appointed “tellers” from both parties read and count the votes. At the end of the session, the presiding officer announces the winner of the majority of votes for president and vice president.
If a lawmaker objects to a state’s electoral vote, the objection must be in writing and signed by at least one-fifth of each chamber. This requirement, introduced in the 2022 law, raises the threshold for objections, making it more difficult for lawmakers to challenge the results. In 2021, objections to votes from Arizona and Pennsylvania were rejected, and no such challenges are expected this time.
Once the votes are counted and certified, the president is inaugurated on January 20. This joint session represents the final opportunity for objections, with the process proceeding smoothly toward the peaceful transfer of power.
