Ballotpedia's Daily Transition Tracker - January 6, 2021
January 6, 2021
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Congress will convene a joint session on Wednesday to count electoral votes by state and confirm the result of the presidential election.   Welcome to Ballotpedia's Transition TrackerJanuary 6, 2021Prior to taking office on January 20, 2021, President-elect Joe Biden (D) and his team must prepare for the transition between presidential administrations, including selecting senior White House staff and appointees to top government positions. In 2020, there were 1,472 government positions subject to presidential appointment: 1,118 positions required Senate confirmation and 354 did not. The new administration is also responsible for filling thousands of other positions across the federal government, including in operations and policy. Every weekday, Ballotpedia is tracking potential Cabinet nominees, appointments, and news related to the Biden presidential transition. 
Appointments and NominationsBiden announced White House staff appointments to the offices of the Cabinet Secretary, Political Strategy and Outreach, Public Engagement, and Management and Administration. None of these positions require Senate confirmation.
News
Transition in Context: Counting the Electoral VotesCongress will convene a joint session on Wednesday to count electoral votes by state and confirm the result of the presidential election. During the session, one member of the U.S. House and one member of the U.S. Senate may submit a written objection after the body reads the vote count from a particular state or the District of Columbia. Once a House member and senator submit an objection, the two chambers of Congress separate to debate for two hours and vote on whether to continue counting the votes in light of the objection. Both chambers must vote by a simple majority to concur with the objection for it to stand, otherwise the objection fails. For more information about the objection process, click here. If a candidate reaches 270 electoral votes in the count, he is declared as elected president. At least a dozen Republican senators have said they will object to certain states' electoral votes. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) was the first senator to announce his objection. CNN also reported that at least 140 House Republicans plan to vote against certification. As president of the Senate, Vice President Mike Pence (R) will preside over the joint session. The proceedings begin at 1 p.m. ET. Ballotpedia will be tracking the vote count here as it happens. What We're Reading
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