What happens if the election between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris ends in an electoral college tie?

As the 2024 general election play heats up, Vice President Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are successful a contention that could travel down to conscionable a fewer 1000 votes successful seven battleground states.

With the polls indicating 1 of the closest elections successful history, there's a question implicit whether either large enactment statesmanlike hopeful volition scope the necessary 270 Electoral College votes to triumph the November 5 predetermination outright. 

Each campaigner needs to find a way to triumph that inevitably winds done important plaything states - wherever they're presently within the polling borderline of error.

But adjacent then, determination is simply a script wherever the predetermination results successful neither campaigner winning the required bulk successful the Electoral College and could necktie 269-269.

So what then? Well, it has happened earlier - albeit not successful 200 years!

In 2020, Joe Biden received 306 electoral votes portion Trump received 232. Polling suggests Trump could flip immoderate of the six battleground states this fall. 

But if Trump flips Arizona, Nevada and Georgia, but the remainder of the representation stays the same, helium inactive comes up short, and Kamala Harris wins with precisely 270 electoral votes.

But if Trump takes 4 of the plaything states, past helium takes the electoral ballot bulk outright. No substance what, it volition beryllium close.

If the 2024 predetermination ends successful a 269-269 tie, the predetermination would determination into the hands of the House of Representatives. 

If this predetermination is decided by the House, accepted contented is that Trump could triumph the presidency as Republicans power 26 House authorities delegations portion Democrats power 22. Another 2 - Minnesota and North Carolina - divided evenly. 

But it truly would travel down to whether Republicans oregon Democrats are victorious successful the legislature down ballot races. 

The recently elected congressmen would beryllium sworn successful and past enactment successful casting a ballot via their delegations for either Trump oregon Harris. 

And since it has been 200 years since a contingent election, determination are a batch of questions that could beryllium raised. 

'The House of Representatives has oversight,' said Casey Burgat, legislative affairs programme manager astatine George Washington University. 

'Instead of each idiosyncratic subordinate having a vote, each authorities votes successful blocks,' helium explained. 'In effect, 1 ballot per authorities and the bulk determination wins.'

'The day is astir apt the biggest chartless retired there,' said Burgat. 'There's nary acceptable date. We cognize that has to hap by the inauguration date, but the House gets to determine erstwhile to person that contingent election.'

He said helium suspects it would beryllium conducted with a rotation telephone vote, but successful the modern age, it is unclear whether delegations could marque usage of physics voting.

Burgat besides noted, accepted contented aside, the world is, each authorities has its ain rules, truthful immoderate authorities delegations whitethorn beryllium bound to the campaigner who won the state's Electoral College votes.

He questioned 'even though Republicans person the bulk of that delegation, if the Democrat won that authorities Electoral College, are they binding them successful a contingent predetermination to spell however their Electoral College ballot does?'

Either mode it would beryllium decided state-by-state, and it lone gets much analyzable from there.

In the past 'contingent election' -  the statesmanlike predetermination of 1824 -  the contention splintered 4 ways betwixt candidates Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams, William Crawford and Henry Clay, meaning nary campaigner received the indispensable bulk of electoral votes to triumph outright.

It was the archetypal and lone clip the statesmanlike predetermination had to beryllium decided by the House of Representatives since the ratification of the 12th Amendment.

It was besides the lone clip a statesmanlike campaigner with the astir electoral votes did not triumph the presidency. 

The state had acold less states backmost past - 24 - and truthful the Electoral College was overmuch smaller arsenic well. 

Jackson had 99 electoral votes and John Quincy Adams had the 2nd astir with 84, but Adams went connected to go the sixth President of the United States.

That's due to the fact that the determination went to the House successful the alleged contingent predetermination -where states decided who would beryllium the adjacent president.

Jackson argued that having won the astir electoral assemblage votes and the fashionable vote, helium should beryllium president.

But Adams actively met with members of Congress including House Speaker Henry Clay, who had travel successful 4th successful the statesmanlike contention and won his location authorities of Kentucky. 

In the end, Adams went connected to beryllium elected president by the House connected the archetypal ballot, garnering 13 states to Jackson's 7 states. Crawford won 4 states.

Kentucky's authorities legislature adjacent directed its delegation to ballot for Jackson, but they alternatively went for Adams, and aft the inauguration, Clay was tapped by President Adams for Secretary of State.

While respective presidents successful caller past person won the White House without the fashionable ballot - including Trump successful 2016 - they person inactive managed to instrumentality a bulk of electoral votes, meaning the process by which the House decides has not been utilized for 200 years.

He said helium suspects it would beryllium conducted with a rotation telephone vote, but successful the modern age, it is unclear whether delegations could marque usage of physics voting.

Burgat besides noted, accepted contented aside, the world is, each authorities has its ain rules, truthful immoderate authorities delegations whitethorn beryllium bound to the campaigner who won the state's Electoral College votes.

He questioned 'even though Republicans person the bulk of that delegation, if the Democrat won that authorities Electoral College, are they binding them successful a contingent predetermination to spell however their Electoral College ballot does?'

Either mode it would beryllium decided state-by-state, and it lone gets much analyzable from there.