Congress will convene a joint session on Wednesday to certify that Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election. But first, President Donald Trump s Republican allies will try to use the process as a last-ditch attempt to keep him in the White House.

Trumps unprecedented effort to reverse an election he lost is expected to be joined by more than half of the 211-member House Republican Caucus and at least a dozen Republican senators . These congressional supporters of the effort to steal the election plan to object to the electoral votes submitted by up to six states: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Like most Trump plans, this is a half-baked scheme that not even the underpants gnomes would consider. It will fail.

But its also important. It gives further credibility however undeserved to dangerous and false claims of mass voter fraud. It encourages distrust in the democratic process. It devalues Bidens victory in spite of his 7 million-plus vote margin. And it will likely be used to make it harder for people to vote in the future.

Here is an explanation of what will and can happen on Jan. 6:

Why does Congress meet on Jan. 6?

Congress will meet in the House of Representatives for a joint session to count the 538 certified electoral votes submitted by the 50 states and the District of Columbia. This happens every presidential election under the 12th Amendment and the Electoral Count Act of 1887, which lay out the process for the submission and counting of electoral votes.

The point of the exercise is to officially count Electoral College votes, which have already been certified, and to offer lawmakers a chance to object. Ordinarily, this is all a formality: The electoral votes are determined by popular vote in each state and D.C., and then Congress approves the tally.

Does the vice president have to come?

During the joint session, the vice president in this case, Mike Pence presides in their role as president of the Senate. This year, there was brief confusion over whether Pence would preside, with Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) stating Pence would not appear, and Pences aides then stating that he would. If the vice president does not show, then the president pro tempore of the Senate, Grassley in this case, would preside. Such a situation has occurred numerous times in history.

What is supposed to happen?