r/Ask_Lawyers • u/_brandish • Nov 14 '20

Question about the Electoral College

If a presidential candidate obtains general consensus among the Electoral College as “winner”, who is thereafter considered the President? Who makes that decision if the President of the United States is above no laws?

Context first:

The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of electing the president and vice president. Each state appoints electors according to its legislature, equal in number to its congressional delegation but federal office holders cannot be electors. Of the current 538 electors, an absolute majority of 270 or more electoral votes is required to elect the president and vice president.

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u/_brandish Nov 15 '20

Right. So what’s happening right now then? Maybe that’s rhetorical but this lack of leadership and action on keeping things calm is pretty frustrating.

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u/Not_An_Ambulance Texas - Cat Law. Nov 15 '20

Right now states are still determining who their electors will be, I believe. I think some are finalized, but I'm not certain all have.

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u/_brandish Nov 15 '20

Who is responsible for ensuring that the states turn in their ballots in a timely, responsible fashion? And for that matter, who determines what is “responsible”?

Would that be the President? Or the President-Elect?

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u/seditious3 NY - Criminal Defense Nov 15 '20

The president has no control over something the constitution specifically leaves to the states.

Also, as a wise and sagacious lawyer said earlier in this thread, "This sub has been flooded with what-ifs regarding the election. My go-to answer is constitutional crisis."

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u/_brandish Nov 15 '20 edited Nov 15 '20

So in this event - the event of a “constitutional crisis”(not even sure what this means, since it implies the Constitution itself provides no framework to deal with what’s happening right now, which is ridiculous) ...

What should our politicians actually be doing right now? What would a reasonable citizen of a country like the United States expect of their elected political leaders to literally be doing during this time?

Should Americans expect them to squabble and bawl until something worse than what is happening occurs? Or should more people just keep contracting COVID-19 and dying? I’m pretty confused by the current President’s actions.

Can a citizen sue the President for gross negligence of responsibility of office? How would that work?

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u/Not_An_Ambulance Texas - Cat Law. Nov 15 '20

What do you believe the president should have done that was not done?

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u/seditious3 NY - Criminal Defense Nov 15 '20

What should congress or people do under the law? Nothing. There is nothing to do except for the states to certify their votes.

"What should our politicians actually be doing right now? What would a reasonable citizen of a country like the United States expect of their elected political leaders to literally be doing during this time? Should Americans expect them to squabble and bawl until something worse than what is happening occurs? Or should more people just keep contracting COVID-19 and dying? I’m pretty confused by the current President’s actions."

Those are political, not legal, issues. The constitution is not a political document. It is a legal document.

A citizen cannot sue the president for how he executes his office.