US Congress convenes Monday to certify Donald Trump's 2024 election victory, with Vice President Kamala Harris overseeing a process that some legal experts say could block his return to the White House.
Harris, who lost to Trump in November's election, has the ungrateful task of supervising the Electoral College count that confirms her rival's win with 312 electors to her 226.
The certification process comes exactly four years after the Capitol was stormed by a violent pro-Trump mob who threatened lawmakers, leading to widespread arrests and accusations that Trump condoned the insurrection.
Trump and his supporters claimed that Joe Biden had stolen the election from him, that there was widespread ballot box fraud and that he was victim of a sinister plot by the Democratic party.
Trump never accepted his 2020 defeat.
Following elections last November, the roles are now reversed. Harris, who took over the Democratic candidacy from Biden in August, lost against Trump.
'Insurrection' debate
In an op-ed for The Hill on 26 December, legal scholars Evan Davis and David Schulte suggested Harris could still prevent Trump taking office by invoking section three of the 14th Amendment.
The provision bars anyone who has engaged in insurrection from holding office.
"The evidence of [Trump's] engaging in such insurrection is overwhelming," Davis and Schulte wrote – pointing to the events of 6 January 2021, when rioters disrupted the last election certification.
A group called Courage for America, made up of former law enforcement officers, military personnel and educators, has echoed this call.
“Congress has a responsibility to stand up for our democracy,” the group says on its website, urging lawmakers to block Trump’s certification.
"Instead, MAGA ("Make America Great Again," Donald Trump's election slogan) extremists have chosen to undermine our democracy at every juncture."
Trump's reaction
Trump has dismissed these efforts, calling them a desperate attempt by Democrats to undermine his presidency. Writing on his Truth Central platform last week, Trump said: “We just won a historic landslide and mandate from the American people.”
He accused Senate Democrats of planning to stall and delay the confirmation of Republican nominees, adding: “REPUBLICANS, BE SMART AND TOUGH!!!”
Trump’s allies in Congress, buoyed by a Republican majority in the House and an increased presence in the Senate, are unlikely to entertain any move to invoke the 14th Amendment.
Blocking his certification would require a two-thirds majority in both chambers, a scenario deemed highly improbable.
Increased security
Ahead of Monday’s session, Washington, DC, is on high alert. Security at the Capitol has been significantly upgraded since the 2021 riot, when inadequate preparations allowed a mob to breach the building.
“We cannot be taken by surprise again,” said Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger, speaking to WTOP News. “New equipment, staffing, resources and training” have bolstered the force’s capabilities, he added, promising “layers of security” around the Capitol.
“We have just trained and trained and trained over the last four years.”
Over the past four years, more than 1,500 people have been charged for crimes related to the 6 January riot.
More than 1,000 have been convicted, with 650 sentenced to prison terms ranging from a few days to 22 years.
Trump has vowed to pardon his supporters involved in the attack.
