An obscure 1845 Florida statute allowed the state legislature to choose its own presidential electors if the state had 'failed to make a choice' for president on Election Day, and Florida Republicans relied primarily on that statute in their 2000 effort to award the state's electoral votes to George W. Bush.
Sources
- What's at Stake When the Supreme Court Argues Moore v. ... (propublica.org)
- https://www.leg.state.fl.us/data/session/2001/house/journals/pdf/bound/hj1212a.pdf (leg.state.fl.us)
- https://flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2001A/1A/BillText/Filed/PDF (flsenate.gov)
- https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CREC-2000-12-15/html/CREC-2000-12-15-pt2-PgE2211.htm (govinfo.gov)
- https://www.npr.org/2000/12/08/1115240/florida-legislature (npr.org)
- https://www.npr.org/2000/11/30/1114766/florida-legislature (npr.org)
- https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/heres-what-electoral-count-act-reform-should-look (lawfaremedia.org)