In the U.S. Presidential election of 2024, the winner needs 270 or more votes from the Electoral College. Each State appoints Electors, one for each Senator and each Representative in that State. There are 435 Representatives, 100 Senators, and 3 Electors also from the District of Columbia (Washington D.C.). The total Electoral Votes is 538, and half of that is 269. So a tie vote is possible.

The 12th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution details what happens if no candidate obtains a majority of Electoral College votes (currently at 270 or more). The House of Representatives votes for President, from the top three Electoral College vote recipients. The Senate votes for the Vice-President, from the top two Electoral College vote recipients. And the Pres. and Veep do not need to be from the same party.

When the Senate votes, a 51 or better majority is needed to choose the Vice-President. A tie is possible, and would result in no VP being chosen by the Senate. But when the House votes, each State has only one vote, and a majority of States (currently 26 or better) is needed to choose the President. A tie is also possible, in which case the newly-chosen Veep would become President. And the District of Columbia, in case of an electoral college tie, gets no vote for Pres. or Veep.

How will the House vote, if there is a tie in the Electoral College vote between Harris and Trump?

The makeup of each State’s delegation of representatives, from the new incoming House of Congress, get one vote. In many States, there is only one Representative or there is a clear majority of Reps. from one party or the other.

Now in the current House — not the incoming House that will actually vote — There are 26 State delegations with a majority of Republicans, 22 with a majority of Democrats, and 2 with a tied number of Republicans and Democrats.

There are also three States with a one-vote majority for Democrats, not including States with only one Representative. No State has one-vote majority for Republicans, other than States with only one Representative. Of the States considered a Toss-up for the upcoming election, only one State, Arizona, could possibly flip from a majority of Republicans as Reps. to a majority of Democrats. This would require Dems to flip two currently-Republican seats to Democrats. But that would give Democratic States 23 votes to 25 votes for Republicans, with 2 States tied. This would result in NO WIN for either Harris or Trump as the 12th Amendment stipulates: “a majority of all the states shall be necessary to a choice.”

On the other hand, Maine could lose a Democratic Representative, turning their 2-0 majority into a tie. North Carolina could flip one Democratic seat to Republican, going from a 7-7 tie to a Republican majority. This would give Republicans another vote, potentially reversing the damage done if Arizona reaches a majority of Democratic seats. Michigan and/or Pennsylvania could each potentially flip from a single seat majority for Dems to Republican, adding one or two more Republican votes to the House vote for President.

In the case where the House is unable to choose a President by at least 26 votes, the newly elected Veep becomes acting President. But that only happens if the Senate elects a Vice President by at least 51 votes. If both legislative bodies tie, the only remedy specified in the Constitution or its amendments is this clause of the 20th Amendment:

“Section 3. If, at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the President-elect shall have died, the Vice President-elect shall become President. If a President shall not have been chosen before the time fixed for the beginning of his term, or if the President-elect shall have failed to qualify, then the Vice President-elect shall act as President until a President shall have qualified; and the Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a President-elect nor a Vice President-elect shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice President shall have qualified.”

Summary

A tie vote is possible in the Electoral College. IF that happens in 2024, Trump has an advantage as 26 state currently have Republican majority delegations to the House. However, the Senate currently have 51 Democrats and 49 Republicans, and the upcoming Senate could be divided 50-50. But if the Democrats control the Senate, an Electoral College tie could result in Trump (R) as President and Walz (D) as Vice President.

Example of possible Electoral College tie vote, US map:

And here’s another possible Electoral College tie map:
https://www.270towin.com/maps/PKpJ9

Ronald L Conte Jr