November 12, reported that the vote-counting work for the US presidential election continues. However, many mainstream American media have calculated that Biden, the Democratic presidential candidate, won more than 270 electoral votes, securing the victory.
Biden also delivered a “victory” speech and began to work on transition.
But the current media calculation results are not the last step in determining who will be the president of the United States. To formally confirm the election of the President of the United States, there is still a several-week timetable and a set of standard procedures.
On November 7, local time, people gathered in Times Square in New York, USA. According to estimates by the US media that day, the Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Biden has won more than 270 electoral votes in the 2020 US presidential election. Photo by China News Agency reporter Liao Pan
Biden forms a transition team of 500 people
Japanese and South Korean leaders spoke with him
On November 10, local time, Biden announced a list of about 500 members of the Transitional Agency Working Group. These members are responsible for the handover of the U.S. Department of Treasury, Department of Defense, Department of Education, and Department of Justice. More than half of the members are women.
In response to the epidemic, Biden has announced a 13-member epidemic response expert team. The team also listed a seven-point anti-epidemic plan, including “free new crown virus testing” for all Americans, and cooperation with governors and mayors to implement “masks for all people.”
In addition, Biden also announced on the 11th that he would choose Ron Klain, who has been his assistant for a long time, as the White House Chief of Staff.
On the morning of the 12th local time, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Biden had the first call. Korean media speculated that the two sides may exchange views on issues such as the realization of the denuclearization of the peninsula and the establishment of a permanent peace mechanism, the plan to consolidate the South Korean-US alliance through deepening economic cooperation, and the talks between South Korean and US leaders and the response to climate change. On the same day, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga also had the first telephone conversation with Biden, emphasizing the importance of the US-Japan security alliance.
On November 7, local time, people gathered in a plaza in San Francisco, USA. According to estimates by the US media that day, the Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Biden has won more than 270 electoral votes in the 2020 US presidential election. Photo by China News Agency reporter Liu Guanguan
Trump filed lawsuits in multiple locations
This state will manually recount
U.S. President Trump still refuses to admit his “lost in the election”. He previously stated that the election is “far from over.
The Trump campaign has filed lawsuits in multiple states over vote-counting issues, alleging election fraud. So far, the court has not confirmed these allegations, nor has it made any decision to overturn the election results.
According to U.S. media reports, many states in the U.S. stipulate that when the gap between candidates’ votes is less than or equal to a certain percentage, a recount may be triggered.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Ravensperger said on the 11th that because Biden and Trump have very close votes, the state will manually conduct a comprehensive recount.
On November 3, local time, the United States ushered in the 2020 election day. The picture shows a banner outside the wall of the White House that day. Photo by China News Agency reporter Chen Mengtong
How many steps does it take to be elected President of the United States?
Know the future schedule in advance
After the election day, the U.S. states count and confirm the results of the general election. After completion, each governor needs to prepare the “certificate of confirmation” of the relevant vote “as soon as practicable”. Such documents will list the names of the presidential electors and the number of votes obtained by the winners and losers. Each state’s seal is printed on the certification document and will be sent to the archives agency in the United States.
December 8 is the deadline for resolving state-level election disputes. All state recounts and court disputes over the outcome of the presidential election will be completed before this date.
On December 14, presidential electors will vote in writing in their respective states and the District of Columbia. 33 states and the District of Columbia have laws or party regulations that require electors to vote based on the state’s general election results. The votes of the President and Vice President will be counted, and electors will sign six “voting certificates.” These certificates, along with other official documents, will be sent by registered mail to different officials including the Speaker of the Senate.
On December 23, the above certification documents must be handed over to designated officials. If there is no delivery, the relevant law will provide other channels to send the results to Washington.
On January 6, 2021, the Senate and House of Representatives will hold a joint meeting to count the votes of the Electoral College. If a presidential candidate has received 270 or more electoral votes, the Senate Speaker and current Vice President Pence will announce the result.
On January 20, the president-elect will be sworn in on the day of inauguration.
