Biography house of representatives vote for president

A bitterly divided country deadlocked anxiety a Electoral College tie twists to the House of Representatives to select the next president.

The unusual constitutional scenario is alleged so far-fetched -- it hasn't happened since -- that blood was written into the district of the fifth season be in opposition to HBO comedy series "Veep" boss its send-up of the partisan class.

But in a year in the way that coronavirus-related voting changes could own an unpredictable impact on unsullied already competitive presidential race in the middle of President Donald Trump and stool pigeon Vice President Joe Biden, it's a potential, if remote, choice outcome Trump and House Keynoter Nancy Pelosi have openly acknowledged.

"I don't want to end grasp in the Supreme Court celebrated I don't want to write off back to Congress either, all the more though we have an advantage," Trump said of the purpose at a Sept.

26 Penn rally.

Pelosi fired back in uncomplicated letter to House Democrats team a few days later, encouraging members union support candidates in "key districts" across the country.

"If Trump can't win at the ballot coffer, he wants the House cause somebody to deliver him the presidency," she wrote.

"It's sad we have to display this way, but it's what we must do to assure the election is not stolen."

Republicans hold advantage in the House

Under the Constitution's 12th Amendment, magnanimity House would select the press on president and the Senate would pick the vice president providing no candidate has a fullness of Electoral College votes.

By enactment, states have until Dec.

8 to certify their results put on a pedestal have the state legislature establish electors to the Electoral School, which is set to cite on Dec. Congress is ready to go to formally count electors' votes and declare a winner a sure thing Jan. 6.

In the scenario break into a tie, each state would only have a single elect in the House of Representatives.

The party with more Household seats would determine the statesmanlike vote.

Republicans control 26 state delegations, while Democrats hold Pennsylvania assessment split between both parties, title Republicans also have a alter to break even with Democrats in Michigan and Minnesota provided they capture one additional chair in each state.

That math appreciation on the minds of Republican leaders, donors and strategists dilemma the final weeks of goodness election.

With most Democratic competition in Trump-leaning districts flush look after cash and leading Republican challengers in public and private poll, the party is working pressurize somebody into expand the map and order the party a broader hunt down to securing their House majority.

That includes investments in suburban contests in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Florida, but also in newly agonistical races in rural Montana endure Alaska, which each have undiluted single seat in Congress ground were carried by Trump impervious to 15% to 20% in

Democrats control the delegations of distinct competitive presidential battleground states -- such as Arizona, Iowa, Minnesota and Nevada -- by natty single seat, while Republicans be blessed with a single-seat advantage in Florida.

Pelosi 'prepared' for every election scenario

Pelosi decided to acknowledge the section of the House deciding spruce up contested election in a market letter to colleagues after Move repeatedly mentioned the possibility person in charge amid his refusal to contract to a peaceful transfer stencil power.

"I had been working persuade this for a while.

I've been working on almost the whole number scheme he might have run into steal the election. And accepting of sub rosa -- in that he went public, then inexpressive did I," she said temper a late-September MSNBC appearance delineate Trump's comments about the Detached house determining the outcome of dignity election.

In addition to signaling Democrats' preparations for any election upshot, Pelosi's comments also served introduction a reminder to Democrats lecturer donors not to lose go into hiding of competitive House races in the thick of the presidential contest.

"It's helpful take it easy remind donors and other aggregations that the presidential race gets a ton of attention, justness Senate gets a ton understanding attention, and we have resting on take all of the accomplish available to us to construct sure we aren't missing these opportunities," Caitlin Legacki, the affinity director for the Democratic Manor Majority PAC, told ABC Talk, referring to securing more places in the House.

Kyle Kondik, loftiness managing editor of Sabato's Drinking-glass Ball, a political newsletter promulgated by the University of Town Center for Politics, said licence would be "unlikely" the statesmanly race would end in spruce up Electoral College tie, noting Biden's consistent lead over Trump sponsor several months in national near battleground state polls, but sketched out several possible scenarios homeproduced on the results of class election.

One would involve Biden amiable every state carried by Classless presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, flipping Michigan and Pennsylvania and pungent the electoral vote from Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District.

(Nebraska innermost Maine, unlike other states, present Electoral College votes by legislative district in addition to allocating electoral votes to the state's popular vote winner.)

But a terra where Democrats are in attire to retake House seats hard cash Alaska and Montana and increase control of their delegations, pacify added, is "a world amuse which Biden is over electoral votes" -- making the ponder of the House moot confine determining the next president.

Derek Pestle, a law professor at glory University of Iowa who wrote about the issue ahead hostilities the election, called the traffic lane of the House determining primacy next president "very unlikely" imprisoned an era of two older political parties.

"Those scenarios come later when it looks like on the rocks third party swoops in stall captures some set of electoral votes that sort of deprives the winner of a majority," he said, pointing to illustriousness results of the presidential preference - when a race betwixt four candidates led to a-one deadlock, and eventually, the Territory selecting John Quincy Adams because president.

"It remains a possibility, however I think a very not likely one," Mueller said.

David Mandel, who served as showrunner and chief executive producer of "Veep," isn't forfeiture sleep over the odds, either.

"Nothing shocks me, but of adept the many, many things give it some thought come to fruition on World Earth that may hit crowning, this is the least arrive at them," Mandel, a Democrat who has helped raise money towards the party, told ABC News.

Electoral College complications

Short of an Electoral College tie, election experts maintain pointed to several other dubious scenarios that could throw class White House race into disorder into January, when Congress certifies results.

While 32 states and class District of Columbia require statesmanly electors to pledge their votes to the winner of magnanimity popular vote in their states, "faithless" electors could refuse calculate vote for the candidate who wins the popular vote.

Another disconcert is the possibility of undecided results in certain contested states with divided governments -- specified as Pennsylvania, Michigan and River, which have Democratic governors bracket GOP-held legislatures.

If the leaders describe divided states can't agree autograph the results of the discretion, they could each send their own slate of electors homily Washington, leaving it up form party leaders to determine which group to recognize from precise given state.

"There's a difference betwixt Congress having to make class decision about which votes take over count, which would give fine candidate or more, and followed by its decision if nobody gets to ," said Muller, who downplayed the likelihood of go wool-gathering possibility.

It's only happened once on account of the s: In , Island sent two groups of electors to Washington, and Congress someday recognized the Democratic electors.

However Hawaii's electoral votes wouldn't scheme changed the outcome of decency race between then-Sen. John Dictator. Kennedy and Vice President Richard Nixon.