What happens next? The key dates until Trump’s second inauguration
Donald Trump has won the presidency for the second time, overcoming impeachments, indictments, and unforced errors on the campaign trail that would have taken down most other political candidates.
But he won't take office for another couple of months. During that time, states will certify the results, electoral votes will be counted, and a new Congress will convene.
Here are the dates that matter leading up to Inauguration Day on January 20, 2025:
State election officials have to certify that the election results are accurate after all the votes are counted.
The U.S. Election Assistance Commission states that Delaware is first in line, and has to certify their results by November 7. Georgia must certify their results by November 23, Michigan by November 25, and North Carolina and Nevada by November 26. Wisconsin follows on December 1 and Arizona on December 2, to name a few.
Transition briefings for the new Trump administration have to start by November 11. Agencies will brief incoming officials on their most important work and the top positions that have to be filled.
The president-elect is set to be sentenced in his hush-money case in New York after being found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records.
After certification of the results, state governors must sign certificates of ascertainment to officially hand the state's electors to the candidate that won the state in question. These signed documents will be handed to Congress and treated as the official results.
The documents, which will have to be signed by December 11, will include the names of the electors expected to cast the state's votes in the upcoming Electoral College vote.
The electors will meet in each state to cast their votes for president and vice president. Along with the certificates of ascertainment, the recorded votes are sent on to Congress and the National Archives.
The deadline for the Electoral College votes to arrive in the nation's capital is the fourth Wednesday in December – this year that's Christmas Day. If the documents have yet to arrive, the president of the Senate or the Archivist may ask for an additional copy from a state's top election officer.
The new Congress begins on January 3 at noon. The House must first elect a speaker for its upcoming term.
A date seared in the memories of many, particularly the members of Congress present for the insurrection nearly four years ago. January 6, 2025, is the day when Congress officially counts the Electoral College votes to certify President-Elect Trump's election.
