Meet the Women Electors Who Will Certify Biden’s Win
When the Electoral College meets to officially certify the results of this year’s presidential election, these history-making women will be part of the group casting the vote.
By Mekita Rivas Shondaland/Amber Hawkins
The Electoral College will cast its votes on December 14, effectively certifying the election results and a Joe Biden-Kamala Harris administration. It will be a major moment not just because of the significance of that ticket Harris will be the first Black and South Asian woman elected Vice President but also because several of the electors casting their votes are history-making women in their own right.
The Electoral College, the United States’ quirky and sometimes controversial method for electing its presidents, is set to formally cast its ballots across the country on Monday.
President Donald Trump’s unprecedented efforts to overturn the election results have attempted to cast doubt and confusion on the system as a whole. Despite Trump’s actions, the Electoral College system has guided presidential elections since the US’s first election in 1789.
“We need it. There is a good reason it’s there and without it one or two states would always select the president because of their high population,” said Nelson Diaz, a Florida elector and active member of the Republican Party for the last two decades.
Every four years, political parties from each US state, as well as the District of Columbia, select slates of electors to formally vote for the next president and vice president in the Electoral College. These roles are generally given to those with deep political connections.
However, this year, Washington, DC’s Democratic Party diverted from this trend and selected a group that is less representative of party stalwarts and instead reflects the community-at-large. Those electors will meet on December 14, when the Electoral College is set to formally cast its ballots across the country.
The Electoral College has a total of 538 electors. The winning presidential and vice-presidential candidates require 270 votes in the Electoral College to win the election. Democrat Joe Biden won 306 electoral votes, including the three from Washington, DC, to Republican President Donald Trump’s 232.