Just Say We Won

The Vast Conspiracy to Overthrow the United States Government — the Soft Coup

Preamble

For all of US history, the power of the Presidency — arguably the most dynamic political office on Earth — transferred peacefully from one electoral winner to the other. The United States President is decided by votes from a body known as the Electoral College. According to Article II, Section 1 of the US Constitution, state party conventions choose their electors under rules that differ from state-to-state based upon local law. After their state’s general election, these electors meet within its geographic boundaries to cast their votes for President, typically — though not always — in line with the popular vote result. Each state has a number of electors set by its population, which is why some states are considered “swing states.” Swing states are important because the vote there often determines the outcome of presidential elections. Upon each state’s Secretary of State or Governor certifying its vote, the raft of electors submit their vote tallies to the President of the Senate (the sitting Vice President of the USA), the Archivist of the United States, and the judge of the district in which they meet. To win the presidential election, a candidate must receive at least 270 of the 538 total possible votes. The President of the Senate’s sole job is to open the certificates in the presence of both Houses of Congress and count the votes. The Constitution lays it out as follows: