really, truly, most sincerely - the incumbent is done

It was past 11 PM before the House of Representatives had finished.

Not only had they taken every minute of the two hours allotted, in five-minute chunks, but they had been quite slow to cast their votes on whether the arguments had confirmed or negated the objection voiced almost ten hours earlier.

In the end, as expected, the objection was overturned and Arizona's Electoral College results were accepted.

Forty minutes later, the Joint Session to COunt Electoral College Votes was finally able to reconvene to continue "the people's work".

Vice-President Pence's opening remarks reminded all would-be terrorists in the world that "violence never wins; freedom wins."

Then the roll call of the States' results was resumed, the red boxes containing that information back in place on the desk.

That was very reassuring to me.

The results for Arizona were formally accepted and added to the count.

The next seven sets of results - for Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, and Florida - were read, met with no objection, and the tally continued, with the incumbent's total far behind that of the elected.

Then the results for Georgia were read.

A Representative from Texas raised an objection... but the Georgia Senator had withdrawn her support.

Objection denied!

And so the roll call went.

The results for Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa - all accepted.

The results for Kansas, Kentucky, and Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, and Massachusetts - accepted without quarrel.

Then it was Michigan's turn -

"Objection!", a Representative cried.

"Denied for lack of Senate support", he was told by Mike Pence, as the results were officially accepted.

I almost felt giddy with relief.

My euphoria continued as state after state - Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska - had their results read, with the Vice-President words -

"Hearing no objection" - marking their numbers into the official tallies of the Republican and Democratic candidates.

Then came Nevada.

"Objection!", a different Representative cried.

"Denied for lack of Senate support", he was told by Mr. Pence.

Then the results for that home of Las Vegas were officially accepted.

New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York - all results accepted!

North Carolina, North Dakota - into the tallies with your data!

Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon - yes, yes, yes!

Then it was time for Pennsylvania.

"Objection!", yet another Representative cried... with a Senator in tow.

Damn.

It was almost midnight-thirty.

So much for the proceedings ending in a timely manner so all could return home.

The Senators completed their debate and were done with their vote within an hour.

The Representatives were intent on grandstanding for the folks back home - got to be mindful of the next election, of course. Truly frustrating and time wasting.

No one said anything during their five-minute allotment on the debate about Nevada's results than they'd already said during their allowed five-minute speeches during the debate on Arizona's results.

 

After dawdling away the first three hours of the new day, and probably taking an extended bathroom break, the House of Representatives was finally ready to join the Senate and allow the Joint Session to reconvene.

I can only imagine how frustrated the Vice President was by the shenanigans of many of his party members there tonight.

It was 3:25 AM - making this event a true feat of endurance for those who rise at 5 AM or earlier for their work day - and this task still needed to be completed for the American people...

for me.

The roll call picked up with Rhode Island after Pennsylvania's results had been officially accepted into the count.

No objections were heard for that tiny state.

Next were South Carolina and South Dakota, Tennessee and Texas, Utah and Vermont - all accepted without a murmur.

Virginia, Washington, West Virginia - their results went straight to the tallies.

Wisconsin followed and was stopped short by a Representative's "Objection!"

 

"Denied for lack of Senate support" was the response from the podium.

i thank You, God.

I'm sure that was the reaction from almost everyone there - it was certainly mine.

I'm a night owl usually, but I was up at 6:30 AM, anxious as I had been to see this.

Now, my energy was flagging and the fade bear was coming with his velvet paws.

Not much longer, though.

Wisconsin's results were accepted, as were those of Wyoming, the final state in the roll call.

With 306 EC votes to the incumbent's 232, Joe Biden was officially certified as the elected President, with incumbent Vice-President Pence making the announcement.

i thank You, God.

I think I'll still refrain from saying the incumbent's name, though.

No need to tempt more evil to befall this country I love.