3 U.S.C. § 7 Proves Electors Must Be Appointed On Election Day, Not Certification Day

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The Post & Email by Leo Donofrio 12/8/2020

MESSAGE TO STATE LEGISLATURES: "STOP ASKING THE GOVERNORS FOR HELP"

The single Election Day issue, and Foster v. Love, the unanimous SCOTUS opinion behind it, just got a big boost of adrenaline from The Gateway Pundit linking to solid research at Thepostemail.com.

In comments at TGP, three important issues that deserve discussion were raised. Below, I provide historical, legal and constitutional answers to all of them: 1) Some are saying that electors are actually “appointed” when the state “certifies” the election, not on Election Day; 2) We have early voting via absentee ballots, so this disproves “single Election Day”; 3) Back in 1845, when the single Election Day statute was passed, they could not gather statewide results. Let’s take them in order.

ELECTORS MUST BE APPOINTED ON ELECTION DAY, NOT CERTIFICATION DAY.

It was all over the media that California only just certified their presidential electors on Dec. 4th. AP also reported that Hawaii, Colorado and New Jersey still have not certified their results. By now, everyone reading this will understand that 3 U.S.C. § 1 requires that electors “shall be appointed on” election day. That statute is unambiguous. But, 3 U.S.C. § 7 provides more guidance:

“The electors of President and Vice President of each State shall meet and give their votes on the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December next following their appointment at such place in each State as the legislature of such State shall direct.”

So, plug Dec. 4, 2020, into 3 U.S.C. § 7, to determine the day on which electors “shall meet and give their votes”, but don’t use election day (Nov. 3rd) as the day of appointment, but instead plug in Dec. 4th, the day California certified electors.

The first Monday after the second Wednesday in December next following Dec. 4th is December 21st, not Dec. 14th. If Dec. 4th, day of California certification, is also the day of appointment, then California must have their electors meet and vote on December 21st. However, everyone knows that the Constitution, Art II, § 1, cl. 3, requires that presidential electors vote on the same day in each State, and this year that date is Dec. 14th, as directed by Congressional enactment in 3 U.S.C § 7.

Therefore, it’s obvious that Congress never intended certification and appointment as the same thing. There could not be a certain uniform day for electors to meet, if the States all appointed electors on different days, and States like California chose to certify later than others, thereby violating the uniform electors code at 3 U.S.C. § 7.

McPherson v. Blacker, the controlling SCOTUS case everyone should be familiar with by now, addressed the language of “appointment”:

More: https://www.thepostemail.com/2020/12/08/3-u-s-c-%c2%a7-7-proves-electors-must-be-appointed-on-election-day-not-certification-day/