It could be days — or even weeks — before Americans know who will control the House of Representatives in the next Congress, setting up what could be a long and anxious window of uncertainty surrou…
Control matters insofar as the House can’t deal with the matter at all until a Speaker is chosen, and the Republicans may very well be incapable (or unwilling) to choose one by Jan 6. (See second link in my previous comment.) Edit: and to be clear, this aspect of the issue would be a problem whether the Presidential election certification is contingent or not.
Also, if some Representatives for a given state are not yet seated because their election is still disputed, it could affect the partisan balance and therefore the decision of the state delegation (edit: if it’s a contingent election).
Control matters insofar as the House can’t deal with the matter at all until a Speaker is chosen, and the Republicans may very well be incapable (or unwilling) to choose one by Jan 6. (See second link in my previous comment.) Edit: and to be clear, this aspect of the issue would be a problem whether the Presidential election certification is contingent or not.
Also, if some Representatives for a given state are not yet seated because their election is still disputed, it could affect the partisan balance and therefore the decision of the state delegation (edit: if it’s a contingent election).