As Donald Trump continued to stoke his base with false allegations of a ‘rigged’ election, violence at the U.S. Capitol shows America has devolved into a fragile state.
Where were the best electoral maps to be found during the 2020 U.S. presidential election?
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Judges are generally reluctant to decide elections, as the Supreme Court controversially did in 2000. As a result, Trump’s flurry of litigation could wind up throwing the election to the House.
A transcript from the Constitutional Convention records the official report creating the Electoral College.
U.S. National Archives
Three approaches were debated during the Constitutional Convention – election by Congress, selection by state legislatures and a popular election, though that was restricted to white landowning men.
Watching the election results in Times Square.
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The polls and pundits say Joe Biden will win, but they’ve been wrong before. So what will be the early indicators of whether Donald Trump stays or goes?
CHARLESTON, SC - OCTOBER 30: Jake Hannay casts his in-person absentee ballot at Seacoast Church West Ashley on October 30, 2020 in Charleston, South Carolina.
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The majority voting system in the United States, as in virtually every country in the world, imperfectly reflects voter preferences and could once again benefit Donald Trump.
What will judges do? And when will they do it?
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Federal election law is riddled with uncertainties. And that’s not a good situation for the country if it finds itself in the middle of a contested election.
What happens when an election is contested?
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The presidential election outcome seems to be at least partially in dispute. Six scholars provide a history of contested elections in the US and explain what happens when the results are challenged.
Richard Nixon, celebrating his election on Nov. 7, 1968, campaigned against a backdrop of racial inequality, civic unrest and polarized politics.
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There are similarities between the law-and-order language used by the 1968 and 2020 presidential candidates and the racial tension and political polarization both years. But much is different.
If the House of Representatives selects the president, each state would get a single vote – not one vote per House member.
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Biden and Trump are both preparing for a court battle in November. But when the Electoral College produces no clear winner, it’s the House of Representatives that’s supposed to select the president.
The Florida legislature could play a role in deciding the 2020 presidential election.
AP Photo/Steve Cannon
The polls are predicting a comfortable win for Joe Biden over Donald Trump. But if this election sees the same polling errors as in 2016, Trump’s chances of re-election are higher than we think.
With rare exceptions, like the 2000 presidential election, the winning candidate usually declares victory on election night. But the win isn’t actually certified until January.
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Labor had its best results in the Newspoll since late April, perhaps reflecting how people view Morrison’s handling of the aged care-coronavirus debacle.
Politics is a push-and-pull between the parties and the states.
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Internal party rules make it harder to attract independents, who make up about one-third of US voters.
Delegates after Donald Trump accepted the GOP presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio on Thursday, July 21, 2016.
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Political conventions used to pick presidential nominees in private. Now the public picks the nominee and then the party has a big party at the convention, writes a scholar of US elections.
A congressional staffer opens the boxes containing the Electoral College ballots in January 2017.
Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call
Steven Heilman, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
Mathematically speaking, the Electoral College is built to virtually ensure narrow victories, making it very susceptible to manipulation and disinformation.
On Dec. 19, 2016, Colorado elector Micheal Baca, in T-shirt second from left, cast his electoral ballot for John Kasich, though Hillary Clinton had won his state’s popular vote.
AP Photo/Brennan Linsley
Many Americans are surprised to learn that Electoral College members do not necessarily have to pick the candidate their state’s voters favored. Or do they?
Interim Dean, College of Education // J.F. Ackerman Professor of Social Studies Education // Director, Ackerman Center // Associate Director, Purdue Center for Economic Education, Purdue University