Electoral College

CT Presidential Electors Vote for Biden, Harris

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Today is the day when presidential electors meet across the country and Connecticut’s seven electors have formally chosen former Vice President Joe Biden as the next president of the United States and for Kamala Harris as the next Vice President.

The meeting in the Senate Chamber of the State Capitol in Hartford started at noon.

Today is the day set by law for the meeting of the Electoral College. Electors, including seven in Connecticut, are meeting in all 50 states and the District of Columbia to cast their ballots. The results will be sent to Washington and tallied in a Jan. 6 joint session of Congress over which Vice President Mike Pence will preside.

Connecticut gets seven electoral votes. We spoke with two of the electors about their thoughts on the system and their responsiblity.

On a national level, the electors' votes have drawn more attention than usual this year because President Donald Trump has refused to concede the election.

“Our election was fare, safer and accurate,” Secretary of the State Denise Merrill said.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the state found ways to keep voters safe by increasing access to absentee voting, she said.

Biden is planning to address the nation Monday night, after the electors have voted. They also voted to waive compensation and ended the ceremony with applause and a paying tribute to the people who volunteered at the polls during the pandemic.

Biden won 306 electoral votes to 232 votes for Trump. It takes 270 votes to be elected.

In 32 states and the District of Columbia, laws require electors to vote for the popular-vote winner. The Supreme Court unanimously upheld this arrangement in July.

Based on Connecticut’s vote, the state’s seven electors were expected to vote for Biden and that is what they did.

Electors almost always vote for the state winner anyway because they generally are devoted to their political party. There's no reason to expect any defections this year.

NBC Connecticut and Associated Press
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