Biden confirmed as president by Electoral College
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THE US Electoral College confirmed Joe Biden on Monday as the nation’s next president, ratifying his November victory in an authoritative state-by-state repudiation of President Donald Trump’s refusal to concede he had lost.
The presidential electors gave Biden a solid majority of 306 electoral votes to Trump’s 232, the same margin that Trump claimed was a landslide when he won the White House four years ago.
California, the most-populous US state, put Biden over the 270 votes needed to win the Electoral College when its 55 electors unanimously cast ballots for him and his running mate, Kamala Harris.
“Once again in America, the rule of law, our Constitution, and the will of the people have prevailed. Our democracy — pushed, tested, threatened — proved to be resilient, true, and strong,” Biden said in an evening speech from his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware, in which he stressed the size of his win and the record 81 million people who voted for him.
The Democratic former vice president renewed his campaign promise to be a president for all Americans, whether they voted for him or not, and said the country has hard work ahead on the virus and economy.
Under a complicated system dating back to the 1780s, a candidate becomes US president not by winning the popular vote but through the Electoral College system, which allots electoral votes to the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on congressional representation.
In 2016, Trump defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton despite losing the national popular vote by nearly 3 million ballots. Biden won the popular vote in November by more than 7 million votes.
Electors are typically party loyalists who are unlikely to break ranks, and few observers had expected Monday’s vote to alter the election’s outcome. With Trump’s legal challenges floundering, the president’s dim hopes of clinging to power rest in persuading Congress not to certify the Electoral College vote in a special January 6 session — an effort all but certain to fail.
After the Electoral College confirmation, Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Biden on winning the US presidential election. In his message, Putin wished Biden “every success,” according to a Kremlin statement yesterday, and expressed confidence that “Russia and the US, which bear special responsibility for global security and stability can, despite the differences, really contribute to solving many problems and challenges that the world is currently facing.”
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said “China has noticed the election results,” adding that Chinese President Xi Jinping had sent a congratulatory message to Biden on November 25.
Wang called on the two sides to uphold the spirit of non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation, focus on cooperation and manage differences, so as to promote the sound and steady development of bilateral ties.
But there was still no concession from the White House, where Trump has continued to make unsupported allegations of fraud. Trump remained in the Oval Office long after the sun set in Washington, calling allies and fellow Republicans while keeping track of the running Electoral College tally, according to White House and campaign aides.
Trump’s efforts to undermine the results also led to concerns about safety for the electors. In Michigan, lawmakers from both parties reported receiving threats, and legislative offices were closed over threats of violence.
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