Article 2, Section 1, Paragraph 3
The Electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by Ballot for two Persons, of whom one at least shall not be an Inhabitant of the same State with themselves. And they shall make a List of all the Persons voted for, and of the Number of Votes for each; which List they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the Seat of the Government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate. The President of the Senate shall, in the Presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the Certificates, and the Votes shall then be counted. The Person having the greatest Number of Votes shall be the President, if such Number be a Majority of the whole Number of Electors appointed; and if there be more than one who have such Majority, and have an equal Number of Votes, then the House of Representatives shall immediately chuse by Ballot one of them for President; and if no Person have a Majority, then from the five highest on the List the said House shall in like Manner chuse the President. But in chusing the President, the Votes shall be taken by States, the Representation from each State having one Vote; A quorum for this purpose shall consist of a Member or Members from two thirds of the States, and a Majority of all the States shall be necessary to a Choice. In every Case, after the Choice of the President, the Person having the greatest Number of Votes of the Electors shall be the Vice President. But if there should remain two or more who have equal Votes, the Senate shall chuse from them by Ballot the Vice President.*
Senate and House Witness
This section has been revised, but it is still good to look at the original concepts. The Vice-President is the President of the Senate. He was to conduct a joint house meeting and then, before all the members open and tally the votes.
Why is the Senate used? The House was to represent the American people. The Senate was to represent the States. The President was to govern interstate interest. It was very important that each of the State Legislatures know that the presidential vote was conducted honestly and in the presence of their representatives. The House members were present to make sure that the people were not slighted in the process. Government was to remain a servant of the people and not some monster dictator system. The Representatives would witness that things were not staged to upset the balance the Constitution provides between the branches of government.
The presidential office carries a lot of power in balancing the branches of government as well as ensuring that justice is done throughout the land by getting criminals before the justice department. It was in the interests of both the States and the citizens, that the presidential election be held honestly and fairly.
Our Salvation is done in the sight of many witnesses. Our salvation is of even greater importance than the choosing of the United States president, so it requires more witnesses!
1 Timothy 6:12, "Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses."
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