The bombshell news that U.S. President Donald Trump has tested positive for the novel coronavirus has dropped a new layer of disarray on a presidential election already complicated by the pandemic. And that is: What would happen if a major-party nominee died or became incapacitated this close to election day? The next option would be to turn the issue over to electoral college voters and get them to agree on a replacement. "In short, there would be a ton of uncertainty if we faced such a tragedy as a presidential candidate dying during this period. Various states have rules that force electoral college voters to elect the candidate who was on the ballot and won the most votes.

Source: CBC News October 02, 2020 10:18 UTC