These are the top three takeaways from the 2020 election for November 9th.
News media doesn’t determine who wins, elections voters do. While it appears all but certain Joe Biden will be President-Elect, he actually still isn’t, regardless of what news media has to say. The Definition of President-Elect is, "A person who has been elected president but who has not officially become president yet". There are only two ways a winning candidate may become President-Elect. Number one, when state elections are certified awarding Electoral College votes sufficient to put a candidate at or above 270 collectively. Number two, when an opposing candidate concedes the race prior to the certification of state votes.
Given President Trump’s contesting of election results in several states, rather than conceding the race, Joe Biden is NOT President-Elect, yet. In a truly deplorable election cycle for the news media generally, the effort to materially walk past this critical fact is the exclamation point on a cycle in which most outlets vacated any remaining credibility.
That takes us to legal challenges. There is a shelf life for President Trump’s legal challenges which will hit sooner than later. Just as every state has its own election laws, different states have different dates for certifying votes. The key dates begin on Tuesday, the 10th as Louisiana becomes the first state in the union to certify its vote. It’s not in question so it has no bearing on President Trump’s legal challenges, though it ushers in the cycle for certifications. The second state to certify is ours. Florida certifies on the 17th. Your first key date to watch as far as President Trump’s challenges is Friday the 20th. That’s the date Georgia certifies. President Trump would have to have sufficient legal standing granted in the courts to prevent that certification from taking place.
It’s almost apropos to have a storm skirting our coast. Why not with everything else going on this year, right? Anyway, my theme of 2020 has been to control what we can control. That remains as true as ever. If you’re hanging on to hope President Trump can work some minor legal miracles in multiple states, cool. But realize there’s nothing we can do to change the outcome in Florida at this point. Live your life informed and if you’re a supporter of President Trump feel good about Florida, especially South Florida, reflecting your values more today than ever before. There’s been a great deal of political change in South Florida which has the potential to shape our state for the foreseeable.
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