An Arizona lawmaker who signed on to be a “fake elector” for Donald Trump after the former president lost his bid for a second term has introduced a bill that would allow members of the statehouse to overturn future election results that they don’t like.
The bill, formally known as Senate Concurrent Resolution 1014 and sponsored by state Sen. Anthony Kern, seeks to bypass the popular vote altogether.
“[I]t is the responsibility of the Arizona Secretary of State to certify elections, including elections for President of the United States, but the sole authority to appoint presidential electors is granted to the Legislature,” the four-line bill reads. Therefore, it concludes, “[T]he Legislature, and no other official, shall appoint presidential electors in accordance with the United States Constitution.”
Giving the legislature absolute power to control Arizona’s electoral college votes, regardless of who won the popular vote, would disenfranchise millions of Arizonans.
It goes to show how much of the US electoral system is based on essentially good faith and convention.
Trump has shown that our entire system is based on nothing more than good faith and convention. Not only does the Constitution not provide any guidance whatsoever about what to do when those in charge refuse to exercise that good faith and convention, but the past few years have shown that even the slightest deviation from that good faith and convention can cause the entire system to come crashing down.