Posted on 01/06/25
| News Source: The Hill
Congress on Monday certified President-elect Trump’s electoral victory, officially cementing his win over Vice President Harris ahead of his inauguration with no objections from any lawmakers as a tally of states was read on the House floor.
Trump captured the presidency with 312 electoral votes to Harris’s 226 — a total that was confirmed during the certification on Monday, marking the final step in the election process before Trump formally takes back the White House on Jan. 20.
Republicans gave a standing ovation in the chamber when Harris announced Trump’s victory was now certified. A bipartisan standing ovation broke out in the House chamber after Harris declared the joint session of Congress dissolved. The event lasted about 30 minutes before Harris gaveled it out.
Harris presided over the event, donning a business-like or expressionless demeanor and refrained from any applause. The proceedings went off without a hitch. Unlike Trump’s 2016 win, no Democratic lawmakers attempted to block certification of his victory.
A number of lawmakers aided in the count, including Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) and Reps. Bryan Steil (R-Wis.) and Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.). Vice President-elect JD Vance was also seated in the chamber during the count.
The proceedings also marked a full 180-degree turn from four years ago, when rioters stormed the Capitol to try and halt the certification of President Biden’s victory over Trump, who had spent weeks pushing false claims that the 2020 election was fraudulent.
Trump, who four years ago stewed in the White House and opted not to speak out or intervene as the violence unfolded, spent Monday at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida as the certification played out without much fanfare. The president-elect called it a “big moment in history” hours before lawmakers arrived to certify the results.