Electoral College Follows the Will of The American People 

Statement by Common Cause President Karen Hobert Flynn

Today, the voice of the American people was heard above the cacophony of lies and disinformation and through the flurry of meritless lawsuits filed around the country seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. The Electoral College did its job and cast its ballots to reflect the will of the American people. As required by federal law, presidential electors in all 50 states and the District of Columbia cast their votes for President-elect Biden, who earned 306 Electoral College votes, and Donald Trump, who earned 232 Electoral College votes. With the vote of Michigan’s electors this afternoon, all of the states that were subjected to baseless lawsuits in recent weeks have now had their electoral votes cast to reflect the will of the voters in those states.

Today’s vote formally recognizes the election of Joe Biden as President in an election that the U.S. intelligence and law enforcement communities, and election officials have agreed was extremely safe and secure. More than 155 million Americans made their voices heard on Election Day and today’s Electoral College vote reaffirms the will of voters in this year’s presidential election.

President Trump and his lawyers, who recognize that he lost the election, have continued to file completely meritless lawsuits. In fact, he has lost every significant post-election lawsuit of more than 60 that his attorneys and allies have filed. Those meritless lawsuits have been dismissed by dozens of judges appointed by President Trump, as well as previous Republican and Democratic presidents.

The 126 House Republicans who joined an amicus brief in support of the completely baseless Texas lawsuit to overturn certified election results in Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin threaten our Constitution and are an embarrassment to our democracy. This effort to try to thwart the will of a majority of voters in these states is appalling and disgraceful. When Congress meets in person to receive the Electoral College votes on January 6, 2021, several congressional Republicans have already said they would challenge certain states’ results. Unlawfully trying to overturn the legitimate results of an election is something we would expect to see in an authoritarian state, not in our democracy.

Disagreeing with the results of the election is not a reason to try to overturn the outcome. There will be another presidential election in four years, and voters who were disappointed in the outcome this time should organize and mobilize in advance of the next election.

In 2020, the American people spoke loudly and clearly on Election Day and the vote of the Electoral College follows the will of the people.

In 2024 we are working to ensure that the Presidential election will be held under a better system, National Popular Vote. NPV would ensure that every vote in every state is relevant and that the winner of the popular vote is selected president.