Unlike many countries where the elected leader takes office almost immediately after the election, in the United States there are 11 weeks between election day and the inauguration. This period, defined by the Constitution, is necessary to complete the complex procedures of election, approval and transfer of power, and at the same time it is a kind of “historical artifact.”
DW writes about this.
Before 1933, this gap was even greater: the president did not take office until March 4, leaving the administration suspended in power for almost four months. However, in the midst of the Great Depression and economic crisis, when the unemployment rate reached 25%, the United States Congress ratified the Twentieth Amendment, reducing the waiting period to January 20. This decision was made to minimize the risks of instability and lack of good governance in times of crisis.
The US electoral process is complex and decentralized, which lengthens the waiting period. After the Nov. 5 election, votes are sent to individual precincts where they are verified and certified. This process includes counting ballots, checking for possible irregularities, and resolving disputes. Only after states have certified the results do electors in each state vote in mid-December and send their votes to Congress for the final count on January 6. That day, the vice president announces the official winner of the election.
Thus, the system, which was developed at the time of the first 13 colonies, takes into account both legal and logistical aspects. In those days, traveling from one state to another took much longer, and the long wait was due to the need to physically get to the government center.
Previously, Cursor wrote that Trump became the 47th president of the United States.
