On November 28, many news sources said that Texas Republican presidential elector Art Sisneros, who doesn’t want to vote for Donald Trump, had resigned his position as a presidential elector. But, technically, he can’t do that; there is no provision for resigning.
What he can do is simply fail to appear in Austin on December 19. Presidential electors who don’t come to the meeting are deemed to have resigned, and to be replaced by the other electors. Thanks to Mark Seidenberg and Jim Riley for this information.
Those with a melodramatic imagination may imagine fanciful schemes in which presidential electors are kidnapped or otherwise prevented from attending such meetings.
Richard Winger,
The remaining electors need to have a vote first. After the vote to declare the office of Presidential Elector vacant, then they can vote to replace.
ONE more giant reason to ABOLISH the super time bomb E.C.
The E.C. was one more conspiracy by the small and slave State oligarchs in the top secret 1787 Fed Convention to have minority rule control of the Prez.
How many nation-states manage to survive by having the PEOPLE-Electors elect the chief executive officer of the regime ???
What about that ABC tv show — designated survivor — for those melodrama or worse folks ???
I have that melodramatic imagination.
I see a book coming.
Even if there isn’t a provision for Sisneros to resign in advance, the fact that he’s announced his resignation implies that he isn’t going to show up for the electors’ meeting in Austin on Dec. 19, and it gives the other electors time to find a replacement and bring that person to the meeting.
All Texas electors die/disappear/dont show up, bar one that supported HRC. He picks the other 37, all of the texas delegation votes for HRC, the election ends 270-268 for HRC… Except D electors in Colorado decided to vote for a NeverTrump republican hoping the house would pick him and now you have the house having to pick between Clinton, Trump and Kasich. That would be a wonderful end for 2016.
No, Demo Rep, the Electoral College was a way to protect the smaller states against concentrations of power in just a few places. We are, after all, a union of sovereign states.