November 7 – States begin to certify election results; Florida’s local certification deadline is Nov 18 and the State certification deadline is Nov 19

November 11 – Transition briefings begin; Agencies will brief incoming officials on their most important work and the top positions that have to be filled.

December 11 – Governors sign certificates of ascertainment; The certificate is an official document issued after a U.S. presidential election that confirms the appointment of electors for each candidate. The certificate is critical because it legally confirms which electors are representing each candidate in each state, ensuring an accurate and traceable Electoral College vote count.

December 17 – Electoral College vote; This is when the appointed electors from each state and the District of Columbia gather to formally cast their votes for president and vice president. This meeting occurs on the first Mon after the second Wed in Dec following the presidential election.

December 25 – Electoral votes must arrive in Washington D.C.; received by the president of the Senate and the national archivist by the 4th Wed

January 3 – Congress convenes to swear in new members (before counting the Presidential electoral votes)

January 6 – Electoral votes are counted by members of Congress;

January 20 – Inauguration; The 47th President takes the oath of office at the National Mall outside the Capitol in Washington, D.C.

The ECRA was signed into law in 2022, is a bipartisan effort to reform and clarify the procedures for counting electoral votes in U.S. presidential elections. It amends the original Electoral Count Act of 1887 to address ambiguities and vulnerabilities exposed during recent elections, aiming to make the electoral certification process more resilient to disputes.

Key provisions include:

1. Clarifying the Role of the Vice President: The ECRA explicitly states that the Vice President’s role during the electoral vote count is strictly ceremonial. This eliminates any interpretation that the Vice President has the authority to unilaterally reject or alter electoral votes.

2. Raising the Objection Threshold in Congress: Under the previous law, only one senator and one representative were needed to object to a state’s electoral votes, potentially disrupting the count. The ECRA increases this threshold to at least one-fifth of both the House and the Senate. This change aims to reduce baseless objections by requiring broader bipartisan support for any challenge.

3. Strengthening State Certification Process: The ECRA requires states to finalize their electoral vote certifications according to their own established laws before the “safe harbor” deadline (six days before the Electoral College meets). This clarification is intended to prevent states from retroactively altering certified election results.

4. Judicial Review: The Act provides a clear judicial path for resolving disputes if a state’s certified electors are contested. This ensures a timely and structured process to address any legitimate claims before Congress receives the results.

5. Addressing Competing Slates of Electors: The ECRA specifies that only one slate of electors from each state, as certified by the governor or another designated state official, can be recognized by Congress. This rule aims to prevent the submission of “alternative” or competing elector slates that do not reflect the certified popular vote.

Overall, the Electoral Count Reform Act seeks to strengthen the integrity of the Electoral College certification process by reducing ambiguity, preventing disruptions, and clarifying the procedures for counting electoral votes.