The Electoral College makes it official but don’t expect Trump to ever admit defeat

In normal times, the Electoral College vote designating the winner of a presidential election would be carried out under the radar with little public notice.

These times have been anything but normal. Yet Monday’s votes by state electors went smoothly once again.

And thankfully, with none of the violence that erupted over the weekend in Washington D.C., Washington State and elsewhere at “Stop the Steal” rallies led by delusional supporters who still believe Donald Trump is the victim of a vast conspiracy to defraud him out of a second term.

The 2020 presidential election is officially over. Nearly eight in 10 Republicans still believe Trump won, as one poll found, but the majority of Americans can tell the difference between reality and dangerous fantasy.

As New Hampshire Republican Gov. Chris Sununu said just before that state’s electors cast their ballots for Biden early Monday, “It’s not just out of tradition but to show folks, especially now more than ever, our system works.”

In Michigan, it worked, though police took extra precautions and escorted electors from their cars to the state capitol building that was shut down because of “credible threats” of violence. In Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Arizona, Nevada and Georgia — states that Trump has repeatedly insisted he won — the system worked.

In the end, Biden got his 306 electoral votes, far more than needed to win.

And there was no repeat of the mayhem and chaos that erupted over the weekend at “Stop the Steal” rallies in Washington D.C. — where four people were stabbed and dozens arrested after a demonstration led by hundreds of far-right white nationalist Proud Boys — and in Olympia, Washington, where an armed right-wing protester was charged with shooting a leftist protester.

We expect Trump to continue trying to subvert the democratic process. We expect some of his supporters in Congress and the Senate will continue, without shame or self-respect, to enable his delusion.

On Jan. 6, when Congress counts the electoral votes on the floor of the House of Representatives, we would not be surprised to see one or more Trump sycophants, egged on by one of his tweets, raise some baseless objection during the House proceeding.

None of it will mean a thing.

It’s official, as of Monday: Trump’s done.

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