This article explains the precise moment when presidential power transitions in the United States, clarifying that it occurs at noon on Inauguration Day, regardless of when the oath of office is taken.
President-elect Donald Trump will return to the White House later this month, but some Americans may not know that there is a precise moment when that transition of power takes place. Most Americans know that Inauguration Day takes place on Jan. 20, but the technical moment in which power transitions from the former president to the incoming leader is actually enshrined within the U.S. Constitution. The new president officially takes office on Jan. 20, unless that date falls on a Sunday.
In that situation, the inauguration would take place on Jan. 21. While many Americans may think that the new president only takes office when they officially take the oath of office, that ceremonial moment is not technically when the Oval Office has a new occupant. The new president officially takes office at the stroke of noon on Inauguration Day, regardless of whether they have taken the oath of office or not. Typically, efforts are made to ensure that the oath is taken as close to noon as possible, but the new president officially takes the reins at noon Eastern time.According to the Amendment, if a president has not been chosen at noon on Jan. 20, then the sitting vice president will become the acting president until a new leader has been chosen. Trump was officially certified as the next president during a joint session of Congress on Jan. 6, another procedure that is codified in U.S. law.The new president traditionally offers an inaugural address on Capitol Hill following their swearing in, with the public invited to attend the transfer of power ceremony. After the ceremony, the new president typically attends a series of inaugural events throughout the capital, including glitzy balls and dances
PRESIDENT INAUGURATION CONSTITUTION TRANSFER OF POWER UNITED STATES
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