VOA慢速英语2020 美国总统大选会发生什么

What Can Happen in US Presidential Election

Election Day is usually the end of the presidential campaign in the United States. This year, it could be just the beginning.

Republican and Democratic Party activists² are preparing for possible legal fights over ballots³, voting rights, and the process for seating the winner.

All of this comes as the country is dealing⁴ with the coronavirus health crisis, also known as COVID-19. The virus has infected more than seven million people nationwide. More than 200,000 have died from the disease.

The U.S. Constitution and federal law have established the following process to seat a president. It is a little more complex than simply giving the keys to the White House to the winner.

Election day

This year, election day is Tuesday, November 3.

Voters in all 50 states and the District of Columbia are not voting directly for the president. They are instead voting for a list of electors who promise to support one of the presidential candidates.

Citizens of U.S. territories including Puerto Rico, Guam and American Samoa cannot vote in the presidential election. But they can vote if their official residency is in one of the states or Washington, DC.

In some states, voters can vote in person or mail in absentee ballots before November 3. But the voting stops when voting stations close on election day. Then, states can begin counting the ballots.

Each state has its own deadline for confirming election results. However, legal action or other issues could delay the vote count.

Deadline to choose electors

December 8 is known as the safe harbor deadline. That is the deadline for states to choose electors who will vote for the winner of the presidential election. The U.S. Congress cannot question or challenge any electors named by this date.

This year, some people fear that delays from mail-in ballots and vote-counting disputes might not produce a winner in some states by the deadline.

Writing in The New Yorker, Jeffrey Toobin describes a possible conflict in four states: Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. All four have Republican-controlled legislatures and the state governor is a Democrat¹. If the legislature was to appoint one list of electors, but the governor rejects it or sends a different list, what would happen? His answer is simply, "No one knows."

Electoral College

December 14 is the date when electors are required to meet and vote for president. This process is known as the Electoral College.

The Electoral College currently has 538 members. They will meet in each state and vote for the president and vice⁵ president. A majority of 270 electoral votes is required to elect the president.

There have been five winners of the Electoral College who actually lost the popular vote. They are John Quincy Adams in 1824; Rutherford B. Hayes in 1876; Benjamin Harrison in 1888; George W. Bush in 2000; and Donald J. Trump⁶ in 2016.

A copy of the official Electoral College results will go to the president of the Senate, who is also the U.S. Vice President by December 23.

Congress to confirm the winner

On January 3, 2021, members of the new Congress take office. Three days later, the new Congress will count the electoral votes and officially confirm the winner.

But if no candidate wins a clear majority of electors, the House of Representatives will vote to decide who becomes president. This process is established in the 12th Amendment⁷ to the U.S. Constitution. Each state's delegation⁸ gets one vote, and the winner of the majority of state delegations⁹ becomes president. The Senate votes for the vice president.

This has happened two times in U.S. history.

In 1824, the Electoral College votes were divided among four candidates. Andrew Jackson had 99 votes. John Quincy Adams came in second with 85. William Crawford received 41 and Henry Clay, the House Speaker, had 37. The House chose Adams over Jackson for president. And Adams named Clay as his Secretary of State.

On February 1, 1877, Congress met to count the electoral votes from the 1876 presidential election. Democrat Samuel Tilden had won the popular vote over Rutherford B. Hayes. But Tilden was one vote short of the 185 electoral votes needed to win.

However, Republican lawmakers disputed election results from Oregon and three southern states: Florida, Louisiana and South Carolina. Both Tilden and Hayes submitted electoral votes from the three southern states claiming victory.

The Democratic-controlled House and the Republican majority Senate met 15 times to decide on the winner. It finally awarded the disputed election to Hayes by one electoral vote.

Presidential succession

The Constitution states that the president's term in office begins on January 20. The president is sworn-in by the middle of the day.

If Congress has yet to confirm a winner of the presidential election, federal law requires the nation to have an acting¹⁰ president. The Speaker of the House would then serve as Acting President under current presidential succession law.

Words in This Story

key - adj. extremely or crucially important

residency - n. a period of time when someone lives in a place

absentee - adj. not being present

deadline - n. a date or time when something must be finished : the last day, hour, or minute that something will be accepted

submit - v. to leave to the judgment or approval of someone else

1 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

2 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

5 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

6 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

7 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

8 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

9 delegations   

n.代表团( delegation的名词复数 )；委托，委派

参考例句：

• In the past 15 years, China has sent 280 women delegations abroad. 十五年来，中国共派280批妇女代表团出访。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• The Sun Ray decision follows the federal pattern of tolerating broad delegations but insisting on safeguards. “阳光”案的判决仿效联邦容许广泛授权的做法，但又坚持保护措施。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法

10 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。