Did you find this answer helpful? Subscribe to keep up with all things Lifelong Learning.
Scenario: The presidential election is tied 269-269. The state delegations in the House are tied 25-25, and the Senate is also tied 50-50. In this scenario, the incumbent President and Vice President are running for re-election. January 20th is a few days away and no one can make a deal in the house to break the tie.Question: In this scenario is the Vice President still constitutionally allowed to cast the tie breaking vote in the Senate for the election of Vice President, and thus essentially electing himself as acting president, indefinitely, come January 20th, until the House can come to an agreement on the election of President? I haven't been able to find any constitutional sources on such a scenario and thought I would ask you all. Thanks!
The crucial text is "a majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice." So the Vice President cannot cast the tie breaking vote.
