Do you like apples? Before you answer, ponder this. There are 538 electoral votes up for grabs in the upcoming Presidential election. In order to be elected President, a candidate must receive at least 270 electoral votes, a simple majority. The same goes for the Vice President.

But what would happen if neither of the Presidential or Vice Presidential candidates received a majority of the electoral votes? In other words, who would become President and Vice President if each of the candidates received 269 electoral votes? Although unlikely, it is mathematically possible for the race to end in a tie, as MSNBC Political Director Chuck Todd recently demonstrated using an Electoral College map.

Not to worry, the United States Constitution provides for that remote possibility, and it’s almost as confusing as the Electoral College process itself.

The Constitution states that, in the event neither of the Presidential or Vice Presidential candidates receives a majority of electoral votes, the U.S. House of Representatives would elect the President and the Senate would elect the Vice President. Since Democrats control the House of Representatives, it’s probably a safe bet that Barack Obama would be elected the next President of the United States.

But, what about the Vice President? No big deal, you might be thinking, since Democrats also control the Senate by a 51-49 margin. Don’t forget, however, that although Joe Lieberman is considered an Independent, he caucuses with the Democrats, thereby providing them with majority control in the Senate. Also don’t forget that Joe Lieberman is a very close friend of John McCain. As a matter of fact, if they were any closer, they would probably be engaged.

Being a supporter of John McCain, Lieberman “could” cast his vote for the Republican Vice Presidential candidate, resulting in a tie vote in the Senate.

Hypothetically speaking, therefore, we could have two tie votes in the Vice Presidential race, one in the Electoral College and one in the Senate. But wait, it gets better. The person who is charged under the Constitution with breaking a tie vote in the Senate is the Vice President of the United States. Just in case you forgot, the current Vice President is Dick Cheney.

Unfortunately, legal scholars disagree about whether the Vice President has the authority under the Constitution to break a tie vote if it was for the election of the Vice President. Knowing Dick Cheney’s history in trying to remake the Constitution in his own image, however, he would cast his vote and let the Supreme Court decide whether his actions were constitutional. I don’t know about you, but my guess is that he would vote for Sarah Palin just for fun.

To sum up this fascinating scenario, it is possible that Barack Obama could be elected President and Sarah Palin could be elected Vice President of the United States of America.

How do you like them apples?



— Paul D. Asfour is an assistant professor, Justice Studies Florida Gulf Coast University, and a former Cape Coral council member