Harris set to certify Trump's presidential poll victory today

In a striking turn of political fortunes, Vice President Kamala Harris will preside over the certification of her own electoral defeat on January 6, marking both a constitutional milestone and the fourth anniversary of one of America's darkest days of modern democracy.

- Agencies

WASHINGTON:

The joint session of Congress, typically a ceremonial finale to the presidential election, carries extraordinary historical weight this year. Harris will fulfill the same constitutional duty that then-Vice President Mike Pence performed in 2021, even after rioters had stormed the Capitol calling for his execution. The certification will formally confirm Donald Trump's 2024 election victory, completing his unprecedented return to power after losing to Joe Biden four years ago.

Inside the Capitol building where the ceremony will unfold, physical reminders of the January 6, 2021, attack have largely vanished. Scars on walls have been repaired, shattered windows replaced, and damaged doors restored. Unlike other historic moments in American democracy, there is no plaque, display, or remembrance of any kind marking the events of that day.

"It's been erased," said Senator Peter Welch, Democrat from Vermont, news agency AP reported. "Winners write history and Trump won. And his version is that it was a peaceful gathering. Obviously completely untrue."

The certification process itself has undergone significant changes since 2021. Congress has updated the Electoral Count Act, making it more difficult for members to object to presidential election results. The reforms were part of broader measures implemented in response to the attack, when some 1,250 rioters - many carrying weapons, zip ties, and Confederate flags - breached the Capitol seeking to stop Biden's certification.