Donald Trump's victory formalized in front of a Congress led by Kamala Harris

WASHINGTON – President-elect Donald Trump officially won a second term in the White House on Monday when the Electoral College votes were read aloud and certified in front of a joint session of Congress led by Trump's 2024 rival, Vice President Kamala Harris.

No lawmaker objected during the roughly 30-minute ceremony, which culminated when tellers read out the results from Texas and Trump formally clinched the 270 electoral votes necessary to become the next president of the United States.

Members of the House and Senate clapped politely as the presidential candidates from their party were named victors in each respective state – a marked contrast from four years ago when a mob of Trump supporters broke into the U.S. Capitol during a deadly riot that delayed for several hours the ceremony that declared President Joe Biden the winner of the 2020 election.

The proceedings cap "the greatest political comeback in American history," House Speaker Mike Johnson wrote in a post on X. "His landslide election and corresponding mandate from the American people dictate that Congress waste no time in delivering on the America First agenda, and we are prepared to hit the ground running."

Harris, the defeated 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, oversaw the joint session in her role as the president of the Senate. She is the first presidential candidate to oversee the certification of her opponent's victory since former Vice President Al Gore in 2000.

"Today, I did what I have done my entire career, which is take seriously the oath that I have taken many times to support and defend the Constitution of the United States," Harris told reporters after the proceedings concluded.

That "included today, performing my constitutional duty to ensure that the people of America, the voters of America, will have their votes counted, that those votes matter, and that they will determine then with the outcome of an election," she said.

Unlike in 2021, Monday's proceedings went off without any hitches. There were few protesters standing outside on the National Mall, which was blanketed in snow from an early January storm that battered large parts of the country. No efforts were made to breach the metal fencing and legions of police stationed around the building. No lawmakers stood to challenge the certificates from key swing states.

The rote event provided stark contrast with the mob of Trump's supporters who four years ago scaled the walls of the Capitol building, broke windows and doors, fought police and explored the chambers and offices of the historic building in an effort to interrupt the certification of Biden's 2020 victory.

That day quickly became the basis of political divisions that resonate into 2025, as reflected in each side's mood entering the chamber. Republicans were energized and excited, at times standing to cheer as Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance's names were read out loud. Vance attended the ceremony as an Ohio GOP senator, a job he is planning to resign from by Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.

“The American people have rejected socialism. They've rejected wokeism, and they've chosen president Trump to lead them. So we're very excited to be certifying results today,” said Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla.

Democrats appeared somber. They noted that no Democrats challenged the results of the election they had lost and said it should serve as an example of how losing parties should gracefully handle defeat.

“It’s a lot to process,” said Sen. Andy Kim, a New Jersey Democrat who went viral four years ago while serving as a House member that cleaned up debris left by the rioters. Retracing his steps in the halls he helped clean, Kim added: “I don't think I have an adjective that can really encapsulate how I feel right now.”

Later Monday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries gathered on the first floor of the Capitol at the window where rioters first broke into the building.

"There's a lot of people who want us to forget, who want to sweep it under the rug, who want to change the story," Schumer said, as he recalled being rushed from the Senate chamber and passing less than 20 feet from the rioters. "We will never forget."

"We hope also that we serve as an example to our Republican colleagues. We are not election deniers," he continued. "We lost the election, we regret it. But we believe in the strength of our democracy."

Contributing: Sudiksha Kochi and Savannah Kuchar

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Donald Trump's victory formalized in front of Congress