Congress Approves Trump’s 2024 Win Without the Pandemonium of the Capitol Attack on January 6, 2021

Unlike January 6, 2021, the process of formally certifying Donald Trump’s 2024 victory was calm.

In sharp contrast to the January 6, 2021, Capitol assault, Congress confirmed President-elect Donald Trump as the victor of the 2024 election Monday in a session that was free of opposition or disturbance.

One of the darkest days in American democracy history occurred four years ago when a crowd of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol after he exhorted rallygoers to “fight like hell” in an effort to reverse the election results.

Under strict security and a winter snowfall, the proceedings ended quickly this time. The Capitol complex was surrounded by tall black fences, a stark reminder of the carnage that had occurred there in the past.

Despite losing the election to Trump, Vice President Kamala Harris presided over the meeting in accordance with her constitutional duties. After the session, which concluded with Congress upholding Trump’s 312 electoral votes versus Harris’ 226—Harris said, “Today, America’s democracy stood.”

Trump, who will be back in the White House in two weeks, insists he never lost the 2020 election and has made references to goals that go beyond the two-term limit provided by the Constitution. He has promised to pardon anyone convicted for their involvement in the Capitol siege and has continued to defend the January 6 mob, referring to it as a “day of love.”

Even if Monday’s peaceful certification followed the long-standing custom of a seamless handover of power, it is still unclear if the quiet events this year will be the norm or if January 6 was an exception.

Mahogany boxes with electoral certificates were carried to the chambers for the certification, in accordance with ceremonial customs. This was reminiscent of the mayhem that occurred four years ago when staff members frantically tried to defend the identical boxes during the attack.

In the House chamber, where rioters had wandered four years prior, some destroying the Capitol and others fighting violently with police, senators made their way.

The House chaplain who prayed during the 2021 violence, Margaret Kibben, asked members to “shine your light in the darkness” as she began Monday’s session. Harris was standing at the same dais where, in 2021, protestors approached, lawmakers put on gas masks, and a Trump supporter named Ashli Babbitt was shot dead while trying to enter the chamber, and then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi was hurried to safety.

Like Mike Pence in 2021, Richard Nixon in 1961, and Al Gore in 2001, Harris certified her own defeat, following historical precedence. Republicans applauded Trump’s triumph at the beginning of the session, followed by Democrats for Harris’s efforts. Within 30 minutes, the session was over, and congratulations were given to JD Vance, the vice president-elect, who was in the front row.

Following the 2021 assault, new procedural protections were implemented, requiring a fifth of lawmakers—rather than merely one from each chamber—to challenge to election results. No complaints were made, though, because even Republicans who had previously questioned the 2020 results now had more faith in the democratic process as a consequence of Trump’s triumph.

Congress maintained its position as a bulwark of democracy, confirming the orderly handover of power to the country’s next leader in spite of lingering tensions and Trump’s divisive comments.