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American voters have spoken, and they decided to rehire Donald Trump as president of the United States.
But he won’t take office until January 20, 2025, and there are multiple things that will happen between now and then. Throughout November, December and January, there will be a transition between the outgoing administration of President Joe Biden and the incoming Trump administration.
The Electoral College must vote
American voters cast ballots on and before Election Day, November 5, but that was only one step in the process. States have until December 11 to confirm their election results with what’s known as Certificates of Ascertainment.
Then, on December 17, slates of electors from the 50 states and Washington, DC, meet in their capitols to officially cast the 538 Electoral College votes.
The government must be funded
A temporary government funding bill passed before the election only lasts through December 20. Lawmakers will need to meet during what’s called the “lame-duck” session to make sure the government can stay open.
The new Congress will begin
Republicans will have the majority in both the House and Senate. All the new lawmakers will take the oath of office and kick off the 119th Congress on January 3.
The Cabinet will be scrutinized
In the slow way the Senate works, most of Trump’s Cabinet picks are unlikely to be confirmed before his inauguration, but at least a handful likely will be. Look for confirmation hearings in early January.
Electoral votes will be counted
On January 6, 2025, the new House and Senate will convene in the House chamber and Vice President Kamala Harris will preside over the counting of Electoral College votes that make Trump president. No vice president since Al Gore in 2001 has had to preside over their own defeat.
Trump will be sworn in
At noon on January 20, 2025, Trump will be sworn in on the west front of the US Capitol. On January 20, 2029, a new president will succeed him.
There are also Trump’s court cases
Don’t forget that before he became president-elect, Trump became a convicted felon this year. A jury in New York found him guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records related to hush money payments to an adult film star before the 2016 election. A sentencing that has already been delayed seems likely to be delayed further. The Manhattan district attorney’s office said it was open to a four-year delay to account for Trump’s presidential term.
There’s a much larger universe of court cases affected by his election. Jack Smith, the special counsel overseeing the federal 2020 election interference and classified documents cases, is likely to step down before Trump takes office.
Perhaps more complicated is the fact that Trump is liable to pay hundreds of millions in damages as a result of separate business fraud and defamation civil cases. He also faces multiple lawsuits, including from Capitol Police officers injured on January 6, 2021.
This story has been updated with additional developments.
