ballot box; votingOn Aug. 30, 2020, Linda Greenhouse published Could It Be 'Bush v. Gore' All Over Again?, NY Times, Aug. 30, 2020, at SR9, cols. 1-4, about possible consequences of then pending Nov. 3, 2020 presidential election. For many years, Linda was The Times' highly respected Supreme Court reporter. The first consequence was that the Twelfth Amendment requires the House of Representatives to elect the President, if no candidate wins an absolute majority of elector votes.

With the Jan. 6, 2021 House of Representatives Select Committee considering recommendations to clarify and strengthen the Electoral Count Act of 1887, now is a good time also to consider alternatives to a House of Representatives election of the President.

Section 4 of the Electoral Count Act of 1887, 3 U.S.C. §15 (2020), provides, "the President of the Senate … shall announce the state of the vote which announcement shall be deemed a sufficient declaration of the persons, if any, elected President and Vice President of the United States."