President-elect Donald Trump will be sworn in as the nation’s 47th president on Monday, January 20th.

Trump will deliver the presidential oath of office alongside Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts at 12:00 p.m. ET in front of the US Capitol in Washington, DC.

Vice President-elect JD Vance will be sworn in first.

Here’s how to watch Trump’s inauguration

The Inauguration Day proceedings will be broadcast live on ABC, CBS, CNN, CSPAN, NBC, Fox News and PBS.

Congress will certify Trump’s victory in the Electoral College on January 6th

The joint session of Congress to count electoral votes on Monday is expected to be far less eventful than the certification four years ago in 2021, which was disrupted by a violent mob of Trump supporters who stormed the US Capitol to stop the count Stop overturning the election results in which Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden. Trump claimed without evidence that the election was stolen from him due to widespread voter fraud.

Federal law requires Congress to meet on Jan. 6 to open each state’s sealed certificates containing its electoral vote records. These votes are brought into the chamber in special mahogany boxes designed for the occasion. Bipartisan representatives from both chambers read out the results and conduct an official count.

Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, who lost to Trump in the November presidential election, will preside over the session in her role as president of the Senate and announce the winner.

The joint meeting is the last official opportunity to raise objections that go beyond any legal challenges. Harris acknowledged Trump’s victory and never disputed it.

How presidential election certification has changed since 2021

After the insurrection and Trump’s alleged attempts to disrupt the certification process, Congress tightened the rules for certification. The revised electoral count law passed in 2022 explicitly defines the role of the vice president, particularly after Trump pressured his running mate, Mike Pence, to object to his defeat – an action that goes far beyond Pence’s ceremonial duties. Pence fought back against Trump and ultimately confirmed his own defeat.

The updated law clarifies that the vice president does not have the authority to determine the election results on January 6th.

Trump holds a large rally in DC on the eve of the inauguration

Trump hosts a “victory rally you’ll never forget” for 20,000 supporters in Washington, DC, the day before his inauguration

The “Make America Great Again Victory Rally” begins at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, January 19th at Capital One Arena. Doors will open at 11 a.m. and attendees can register for the rally for up to two tickets per phone number, according to the Trump Inauguration website.

Inauguration Day events

• Procession to the Capitol: After a brief meeting, Trump and President Biden will walk together to the Capitol for the swearing-in ceremony.
• Swearing-in ceremony for Trump and Vance.
• Trump’s inaugural speech.
• Honorary farewell for outgoing President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden.
• Signing Ceremony: Trump’s first official actions will take place in the Presidential Room, adjacent to the Senate chamber in the U.S. Capitol. Trump will meet there with advisers and members of Congress to sign nominations and any memoranda, proclamations or executive orders.
• Opening lunch
• Inaugural Review Parade: Trump and Vance will make their way to the steps on the East Front of the Capitol, where they will review military troops before leading a procession of ceremonial military regiments, civic groups, marching bands and floats down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House .
• Opening balls and celebrations.

Flags will be at half-staff at Trump’s inauguration

Meanwhile, the flags are lowered to half the staff Trump‘s inauguration.

Biden ordered U.S. flags to fly at half-staff for 30 days starting last Sunday in honor of former President Jimmy Carter, the longest-lived American president, who died at 100. That means the flags will remain lowered when Trump is sworn in.

The U.S. flag code requires flags to be flown at half-mast for 30 days after the death of a sitting or former president.

Biden’s proclamation is valid until sunset on January 28th. In a Truth Social post on Friday, Trump railed against the flag flying at half-staff on his big day.

“Democrats are all ‘excited’ that our magnificent American flag may fly at ‘half-mast’ during my inauguration,” he wrote on Truth Social. “They think it’s so great and they’re so happy about it, because in reality they don’t love our country, they only think about themselves.”

He added: “Look at what they have done to our once GREAT America in the last four years – it is a total mess! In any case, due to the death of President Jimmy Carter, the flag can be raised for the first time ever during an inauguration of a future president, no one wants to see that, and no American can be happy about it. Let’s see how it turns out.

Trump’s Inauguration: Historical

Trump won the 2024 election against Harris in November. He defeated Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election before losing to Biden in 2020.

Trump is now expected to become the second president to win two non-consecutive terms, following Grover Cleveland, the 22nd and 24th presidents, who served from 1885 to 1889 and 1893 to 1897.

Trump’s inauguration day coincides with this year’s commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a federal holiday since 1986. Trump will also be the second president to be sworn in on the holiday, following Bill Clinton’s second inauguration in 1997.

What is the theme of the 60th US Presidential Inauguration Ceremony?

Last month, the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC) announced the theme of the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies: “Our Enduring Democracy: A Constitutional Promise.”

The JCCIC said the theme “honors the Founding Fathers’ commitment to future generations of Americans to preserve the continuity and stability of our democratic system of government.”

What happens next

The JCCIC made a limited number of inauguration tickets available to the public through members of Congress, which will be available to the public in the weeks leading up to the event. Tickets are free.