Despite a last ditch effort by concerned citizens and Federalists, Donald J. Trump won the Electoral College vote and with it, the U.S. presidency.
Yes, Trump was elected president in November, but the Electoral College had not formalized that victory until Monday, and not without protests.
The president-elect ultimately won easily, racking up the 270 electoral votes needed to send him to the White House and then some.
Any talk of the Electoral College stopping Trump, as the framers of the system itself made possible as a failsafe, was a moot point.
Interest in the normally mundane, archaic process spiked this year after Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by more than 2.8 million.
And also because … well, it’s Donald Trump.
In the end, the brash reality star and businessman secured 304 electoral votes – just two fewer than he earned in the November election.
He let people know it, too, as only he can …
Ridiculous tweets aside … so much for the Hamilton Electors‘ efforts to deny him 270 and whispers that as many as 20 electors might defect.
Not only did it not happen, but more electors tried to defect from Clinton than from Trump, by a count of 7-2, according to media reports.
Three Democratic electors in Maine, Minnesota, and Colorado tried to vote for other candidates than the former Secretary of State.
Electors in both Maine and Minnesota attempted to cast a ballot for Bernie Sanders, while a Colorado elector tried to write in John Kasich.
In Washington, a state where Clinton prevailed by double digits a month ago, she received just eight of the state’s 12 electoral votes.
Colin Powell received three and Native American tribal leader Faith Spotted Eagle received one as part of an effort to protest Trump.
Yes, that was actually a thing that occurred this afternoon.
All of these faithless electors’ votes, however, were disallowed because of state rules binding them to the statewide popular vote winner.
So beyond a fun read for us, that was the end of that.
Despite a deluge of anti-Trump protesters descending on state capitols nationwide, nearly every Republican elector voted as expected.
Only one GOP elector, Christopher Suprun of Texas, pledged not to vote for Trump despite his state heavily favoring the future president.
One other Texas elector also abandoned Trump today.
The 538 members of the Electoral College met in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., Monday. Congress will certify the results on January 6.
No, there is no chance of stopping him then, either.
Donald Trump will be inaugurated as President on January 20, a day many have already circled on their calendars as the End of Days.
Kidding.