Which official sources (state certificates, National Archives, FEC) confirm the electoral vote and popular-vote tallies for 2024, and how are discrepancies resolved?
Executive summary
State election officials are the authoritative source for both the final popular‑vote tallies and the slate of presidential electors; those state certifications are the papers courts, Congress, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and the National Archives rely on to record and confirm the 2024 outcome [1] [2]. The National Archives (through the Office of the Federal Register) collects and posts the Certificates of Ascertainment and Certificates of Vote that embody states’ electoral votes, while the FEC compiles state‑reported popular‑vote reports as a public service; recounts and legal contests are resolved under state law before states transmit their certificates, and Congress’s January count is the final statutory step to confirm electoral votes [3] [4] [5] [6].
1. Who officially confirms the popular‑vote totals: the states, not the FEC
State and local election offices canvass, verify and certify the final popular‑vote tallies for federal offices; the FEC explicitly states that state election offices are responsible for certifying results and that the FEC’s role is to compile those officially reported numbers—not to certify them itself [1] [4]. The canvass and certification timelines are set by each state; those certified state totals are the basis for any Certificate of Ascertainment that lists the final popular‑vote counts used to appoint electors [7] [2].
2. How electoral votes are officially confirmed: certificates, NARA, Congress
After state certification of vote totals, governors execute Certificates of Ascertainment naming the appointed electors and listing vote tallies; states’ electors then meet and fill out Certificates of Vote recording their ballots, and both documents are sent to the Archivist (NARA) and to Congress as part of the official record [2] [8]. NARA’s Office of the Federal Register coordinates posting and receipt of these certificates and publishes the Electoral College results as the Certificates are received and processed, while explicitly having no role in appointing electors [3] [9].
3. Where to find the official 2024 records and what each source represents
The authoritative, primary documents are the state Certificates of Ascertainment and Certificates of Vote filed by each state and housed or posted by the National Archives; NARA’s public pages show the 2024 Electoral College outcome and link to each state’s filed certificates [3] [9] [2]. The FEC’s downloadable “Official 2024 Presidential General Election Results” compiles state‑reported popular totals and references the Electoral Vote certificates at NARA, but the FEC reiterates that its dataset is compiled from state offices rather than acting as the certifying authority [4] [1].
4. How discrepancies, recounts and legal contests are resolved before federal certification
There is no single federal recount statute; states have their own recount and contest procedures and statutory timelines that must be completed before states transmit Certificates of Ascertainment to the Archivist and before electors meet, meaning recounts and legal challenges must be resolved under state law in time for the Electoral College deadlines [5] [10] [7]. The Election Assistance Commission explains that while federal uniform timelines for recounts do not exist, any recount must be resolved before the statutory deadlines for transmission of Certificates of Ascertainment [5]. After states transmit their certificates and electors vote, Congress convenes a joint session to count electoral votes—under the reformed objections threshold in the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act of 2022—and that count on January 6 is the final federal confirmation; if no valid state‑level certificate changes prior to that point, Congress’s count affirms the result [6].
5. Practical example and caveats about institutional roles and narratives
Pennsylvania’s public certification process shows the mechanics: county canvasses feed state verification and then the Secretary issues the official certification document required by state law—illustrating that certification is a state action, not a federal one—and that official state site is the primary source for vote totals [11] [7]. Readers should note institutional boundaries: NARA archives and posts certificates and coordinates the Electoral College process but does not decide disputes; the FEC compiles and publishes state‑reported totals but defers certification to states [3] [1]. Reporting that focuses on media‑night tallies or third‑party aggregators may conflate unofficial returns with the certified records that legally determine electors [7] [4].
Conclusion: The chain of official confirmation runs state canvass → state Certificate of Ascertainment → electors’ Certificates of Vote → submission to NARA and transmission to Congress, with recounts and contests resolved under state law before the certificates are transmitted and Congress’s January count providing the final federal acknowledgment [5] [2] [6].