BBC

[den]

I can't help feeling the BBC has jumped the gun. Is this a projection or has counting actually finished?


2PM AEST

Comments

[klwalton.livejournal.com]

Electors cannot change their minds.

[pure-agnostic.livejournal.com]

Actually, they can change their minds, but there are penalties. Anyhow, no faithless elector has ever changed the outcome of an election.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faithless_elector

[klwalton.livejournal.com]

And they're only committed to the first vote. But I don't believe there's ever been a tie, has there?

[pure-agnostic.livejournal.com]

Yes, there was a tie once among electors - and that threw the election into the House of Representatives. The confusing mess in the house led to the 12th Amendment requiring electors to cast separate votes for President and Vice-President.

In 1800, the candidates of the Democratic-Republican Party (Jefferson for President and Aaron Burr for Vice President) each tied for first place. However, since all electoral votes were for President, Burr's votes were technically for him being President even though he was his party's second choice. Jefferson was so hated by Federalists that the party members sitting in the lame duck Congress tried to elect Burr. The Congress deadlocked for 35 ballots as neither candidate received the necessary vote of a majority (8 out of 15 states) of the state delegations in the House. Only after Federalist Party leader Alexander Hamilton - who disliked Burr - made known his preference for Jefferson was the issue resolved on the 36th ballot.

The election of 1824 was also thrown into the House because none of the 4 candidates received a majority of the popular vote nor the electoral vote.

[klwalton.livejournal.com]

Thank you :). I wasn't too lazy to go Googling, but I've got about 40 tabs open and am involved in other things.