What if presidential candidates tie

Although it has never happened, it is theoretically possible that the electoral votes could be evenly split between two candidates, resulting in a tie. According to the 12th Amendment of the U. Constitution , the newly-elected House of Representatives would determine the winner. The House would also decide the election if no candidate receives a majority of electoral votes. This has happened once since the passage of the 12th Amendment, in While the Democrats hold a majority in the House before the election, the fact that each state delegation only casts one vote gives Republicans an advantage.

If the current partisanship breakdown carries over into the next Congress, Republicans would have a majority of state delegations, with Pennsylvania split If Pennsylvania's delegation cannot agree on a presidential choice, the delegation will not be allowed to vote. The election took place against a backdrop of uncertainty.

Our readers had questions about what to expect in elections at all levels of government, from the casting of ballots to the certification of final results. Ballotpedia's Election Help Desk was designed to answer those questions. It appears Biden is leading in Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District, which Trump won in and accounts for one electoral vote.

If he ends up winning there, the tie is off the table. The presidential election is left up to members of the House of Representatives in the event of a tie or any results where no one wins electoral votes. The choice for the vice president is left up to the Senate. Live Election Day coverage: Trump projected to win Ohio, making it first major battleground state called. Members of the Electoral College gather in their states on the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December following the election to officially elect the president.

The electors will meet on Dec. Currently, the overall House majority is Democratic. But in 27 states a majority of delegates are Republican and in Pennsylvania the delegates are evenly split. Whether an electoral college tie favors Donald Trump or Joe Biden will depend on whether many seats are flipped by the final vote count, and where. Does that mean president and vice-president could be of different parties?

Indeed, it does. In case neither candidate gets the 26 votes they need to be elected president by inauguration day, then the vice-president elect becomes acting president, while the House tries to agree on a president. In the first four U. The candidate who won the majority of Electoral College votes was the president and the second-place finisher was the vice president.

The tie election made an even stronger case that the Electoral College needed to be fixed. Map illustrates votes by state, in the U. Meanwhile, the Federalist candidate, incumbent John Adams, only received 65 votes. According to the Constitution, an electoral tie goes to the House of Representatives, where each state casts one ballot to pick a winner from among the two tied candidates.