The Joint Session
When Congress meets in a joint session to certify the results of the Electoral College, objections to any state’s returns may be raised in writing by at least one senator and one member of the House.
If a qualified objection is raised, the joint session recesses so the House and Senate can debate the question in their respective chambers for up to two hours before voting to accept or reject the objection.Â
Majority votes are required in both chambers for an objection to be sustained and the contested electoral votes excluded, and the joint session then picks up where it left off in the state-by-state certification process.
These procedures have been in effect since the enactment of the Electoral Count Act of 1887.
About a dozen Republican senators and numerous members of the House GOP are expected to raise objections to the election results in states where they alleged voter fraud occurred which resulted in President Trump’s defeat.
Should the joint session certify Biden’s victory in the Electoral College?
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