evidence: Federal law requires the states to deliver certified electoral college results to the vice president, serving as president of the Senate, and other parties by December 23. Then a joint meeting of Congress is required by the 12th Amendment to count the electoral votes and declare the winners of the presidential election. The session on January 6, 2021 starts at 1 p.m. [...] The Electoral Count Act of 1887 and several federal statutes address questions about contested electors that land in Congress. The Congressional Research Service’s current interpretation of the Electoral Count Act explains its understanding of the process when it comes to objections to electoral votes. [...] The second scenario applies when two or more slates of electors from the same state are submitted to Congress, as was the case for the 1876 presidential election. It is unclear, said the CRS, if Congress could vote to discard a slate of electoral votes certified by a state if it followed its own election laws. "The assumption presented in the law is that only one list would be from electors who were determined to be appointed pursuant to the state election contest statute (as provided for in 3 U.S.C. §5), and that in such case, only those electors should be counted," the CRS determined.