Updated 6:47 p.m. - The California Electoral College voters unanimously cast their ballots for Hillary Clinton at the state Capitol. While usually a formality, the event Monday contained drama both inside and outside the building.
On the Capitol grounds, hundreds of protesters held signs and chanted. They wanted the Electoral College to make an historic break with past practice and choose a different candidate, no matter how unlikely that was.
"Well, I don’t expect the Electoral College to do anything, but something’s got to be done," said Michael Schlussler of Wheatland. "Because this is crazy. This is insane. It’s bizarro world."
A couple of Trump supporters also attended. Christopher Locke wore the campaign’s signature “Make America Great Again” hat. He said he wanted to understand the protesters' positions.
"They’ve been demanding, essentially, that the Electoral College deny Trump the office of the presidency, even though he did win the actual vote—the vote that mattered (via the Electoral College)," said Locke. "So, I find it interesting how they’re claiming to support democracy, but in my opinion they’re trying to undermine it."
Electors said they did not seriously consider working to upend the process by, for instance, supporting an establishment Republican.
"We’re here because we worked our hearts out for Hillary Clinton," said Elector Christine Pelosi, daughter of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. "But if she wanted us to do something else, then that would have been very important for us to hear, and that’s not what we heard."
That doesn’t mean the Electoral College meeting ended entirely conventionally. Before adjourning, Pelosi offered a resolution.
"I move that as an Electoral College, we do not normalize this election," she said. "We do not accept Russian interference in our election. We do not ignore possible collusion between Russian and Trump operatives."
The state electors asked that, along with California's votes, Congress receive their request for an independent investigation of Russian hacking.
(AP) - California's 55 Electoral College members have cast their votes in favor of Democrat Hillary Clinton and her running mate, Tim Kaine.
The members met Monday afternoon at the State Capitol. All were selected by Democratic officeholders or Democratic candidates for office. California's electors are pledged to vote for the winner of the state's popular vote, Hillary Clinton.
Donald Trump has also cruised to victory in the Electoral College despite thousands of anti-Trump protesters who converged on state capitols across the country.
Monday's vote ensures that the billionaire will become the 45th president of the United States.
Texas put the Republican president-elect over the 270-vote threshold.
Prior to the votes being cast in California, hundreds of protesters gathered at the capitol building as the state's electoral members are set to vote for the next president of the United States.
Some protesters were holding signs that stated, "Protect America, Stop Trump" and "Trump's Lies Matter."
However, only a few people say they expect it to sucessfully sway electoral college voters.
Judith Dillon, D-Placerville, says she came to the rally because she feels the presidential election was fraudulent after learning that the FBI and CIA believe the Russian government was involved in election-related hacking.
California's 55 electors were pledged to vote for the winner of the state's popular vote, Hillary Clinton. A judge last week rejected an appeal by one elector seeking permission to cast his ballot for another candidate.
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