Congress assembled Monday with snow and security personnel swirling around the Capitol to officially certify President-elect Donald Trump’s historic political comeback.
The counting of votes certified by each of the 50 states in December will make Trump’s 312 electoral vote romp official only two weeks before Inauguration Day.
The ceremony represents a monumental victory for Trump, who will follow the proceedings from Mar-a-Lago as he continues preparing for his post-inauguration sprint.
“CONGRESS CERTIFIES OUR GREAT ELECTION VICTORY TODAY — A BIG MOMENT IN HISTORY. MAGA!” an ebullient Trump posted Monday morning on Truth Social.
The Capitol complex, almost empty due to a rare heavy snowstorm in Washington, is blocked off by barriers in a security perimeter extending for blocks. No crowds will assemble to cheer, and no protesters or even tourists will be allowed anywhere near the Capitol.
The process and schedule are largely dictated by law and precedent, although the process was altered by the Electoral Count Act of 2022. Still, unexpected fireworks are possible.
Each chamber will briefly gavel in at noon. At 12:40 p.m. Eastern, Senators will convene in the Senate chamber before walking south through the Capitol to the House chamber.
The Joint Session of Congress begins at 1:00 p.m. Eastern. Vice President Kamala Harris will preside over the certification of Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance’s victory.
Harris’s ceremonial role in rubber stamping Trump’s victory, cementing her own loss, may be her lasting political legacy in a decades-long political career.
Electoral ballots are certified alphabetically by state. Each certificate will be opened and inspected by four “tellers” – two from each chamber.
Members of Congress can challenge each state’s electoral votes at this point. But unlike in past years, when only one member of the House and one member from the Senate were required in order to pause proceedings, an objection must be submitted in writing and signed by at least one-fifth of the House as well as one-fifth of the Senate.
That’s a high bar, and the grounds for objecting were also narrowed by the Electoral Count Act.
Harris’s role as Vice President will be “solely ministerial.” She will have no authority to influence the outcome. Her main contribution will be announcing the outcome after the official tally.
The process is expected to take about an hour, absent theatrics from Democrats.
There are strong signs Democrats will take a pass on objecting to the count. But Democrats have a long history of objecting after Republican victories, having done so after every Republican presidential victory beginning in 2000.
That history is unlikely to stop Democrat efforts to portray themselves as taking the moral high ground.
But don’t count out individual Democrats, most likely from the rowdy ranks of the House Democratic Caucus, causing a scene. It was only 15 months ago that former Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) pulled a fire alarm in a House office building, delaying a critical government spending vote.
Bowman is gone, defeated last year in a bruising primary. But many of his colleagues in the Squad remain. And new members of the caucus might look to make a name for themselves in the early days of Democrat resistance to Trump and his Republican majorities on Capitol Hill.
Regardless of any potential Democrat shenanigans, the day represents a significant victory for Trump and his movement, and joyful congressional Republicans, if only for a time, will unite to celebrate making their governing trifecta official.
UPDATE 1:42 p.m. ET:
Today’s historic joint session to certify the 2024 elections results was as notable for what did not happen as for what did happen. The proceedings only lasted for roughly a half hour. There were no objections to the results in a single state. There were no masks (except a few in the press gallery) to harken to the pandemic-era chaos of the 2021 certification. There were no signs of the Democrat resistance of the 2017 certification when the Russian collusion hoax poisoned the atmosphere.
The second Trump administration is poised to be far different, and potentially far more productive, than the first. Republicans are united around the Trump agenda. And Democrats are in the wilderness without a clear leader – perfectly symbolized by Harris officiating the proceedings Monday. History was made today, but there is much more ahead.
UPDATE 1:35 p.m. ET:
Congress has certified the 2024 election results. It is now official. Donald Trump will be inaugurated as our 47th president on January 20, 2025. In a cruel twist of fate, Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump’s opponent in the 2024 election, announces the results and bangs the gavel to dissolve the joint session.
UPDATE 1:34 p.m. ET:
Harris announced the vote totals for vice president. The room erupted for Vance. Democrats’ applause was noticeably pro forma for Walz.
UPDATE 1:33 p.m. ET:
Harris reads of the tally, announced 312 votes for Donald J. Trump of Florida. The House and the gallery erupt into cheers. This must be miserable for Harris. She bangs the gavel to quiet the room before reading her own tally, as Democrats cheer. What a surreal moment.
UPDATE 1:32 p.m. ET:
Wyoming’s votes were announced for Trump and Vance. The tally is being compiled officially by the tellers.
UPDATE 1:27 p.m. ET:
Republicans in the chamber erupted when Ohio’s seventeen electoral voter were awarded to Trump and Vance. As noted earlier, Vance is in the chamber today.
UPDATE 1:26 p.m. ET:
Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) is wearing a black “Dark MAGA” hat.
UPDATE 1:25 p.m. ET:
Sen. Mitch McConnell is notably absent from the chamber today, as Punchbowl News points out. McConnell, freed from his leadership burden, is likely to be a hindrance to much of Trump’s agenda this Congress.
UPDATE 1:24 p.m. ET:
This is certainly a painful day for many Democrats. As The Hill’s Mychael Schnell points out, all five Democrats from Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) select committee on January 6 are in attendance. Pelosi is seated by her longtime leadership partner Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), looking stern and holding her phone, which she has been checking regularly. Most Democrats are staring blankly ahead or on their phones, only looking up to applaud when votes for Harris and Tim Walz are announced.
UPDATE 1:19 p.m. ET:
The House and Senate “tellers” have been announcing that each certificate “seems to be regular in form and authentic” before quickly moving to the next state’s certificate. We are breezing through this and are already to Minnesota.
UPDATE 1:15 p.m. ET:
Three days ago, the atmosphere in the House chamber was far different as Johnson fought and ultimately won a dramatic first ballot battle to retain his gavel. Today’s proceedings, particularly after modifications compelled by the Electoral Count Act, are unlikely to bring that high drama. So far, things have gone smoothly. We are already to Kansas.
UPDATE 1:11 p.m. ET:
Senators do not often deign to visit the House chamber, with a few exceptions (Sen. Markwayne Mullen (R-OK), a former House member, is often in the chamber. For today’s join session, Senators are seated in the first two rows of the chamber, while House members are relegated to the back.
California’s electoral votes for Harris were announced to applause from Democrats. There won’t be much additional applause from Democrats this afternoon.
UPDATE 1:08 p.m. ET:
Alabama and its nine electoral votes for Trump and Vance are announced to applause from Republicans. Next up is Alaska. The tally will continue in alphabetical order.
UPDATE 1:06 p.m. ET:
Harris has slams the gavel and convenes the joint session. We have begun.
UPDATE 1:05 p.m. ET:
Vice President-elect JD Vance is here in his role as Senator.
UPDATE 1:04 p.m. ET:
The House floor and the press gallery are packed, but the gallery is notably empty, perhaps only a quarter full (or less). Election certifications, which of course occur only once every four years, are generally full to the brim. After such a historic election, the building would be about to burst under normal circumstances. That is a good indicator of the horrendous travel conditions in and around Washington.
UPDATE 12:59 p.m. ET:
The House chamber is packed as Senators continue filing in. Everyone is standing and greeting one another. Even up in the press gallery, the roar is loud. They’ll be quieted soon once the joint session begins, which should be within a few minutes.
UPDATE 12:56 p.m ET:
The House was brought to order. Vice President Kamala Harris led the Senate into the Chamber, greeting House members. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IO), as the Seante Pro Tempore, led the pack of senators.
UPDATE 12:56 p.m. ET:
The District of Columbia is not well prepared to handle the eight-plus (with more coming) inches of snow that began early Monday morning. The federal government is closed today, although Congress, which does not operate on Office of Personnel Management time), is obviously in session. Most roads remain impassable, although snow plows appear to be concentrating on areas around the Capitol to ensure members can perform their constitutional imperative today. For many new members of the House and Senate, this is sure to be a memorable beginning to their new jobs.
UPDATE 12:43 p.m. ET:
A quorum (majority plus one) of each of the two chambers is required today. The snowstorm has created travel difficulties, but while some members may be stranded at home, quorums are expected to be met easily. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) requested members remain in Washington over the weekend (the House Republican Conference met Saturday to discuss budget reconciliation strategy), although many went home and may not be here. Democrat attendance is likely to be spottier, but again, there appears little chance a quorum will not be easily met.
UPDATE 12:36 p.m. ET:
House members have begun trickling into the House chamber, with a dozen or so, mostly Republicans, already seated. We’re still 20 minutes or so from the joint session beginning, but the room will fill up soon.
Bradley Jaye is a Capitol Hill Correspondent for Breitbart News. Follow him on X/Twitter at @BradleyAJaye.
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