In a 269-269 electoral tie, one elector would defect to the national popular vote winner to give him/her a majority when the electoral college convenes.
You really think so? These electors are picked by their party.
I'm struggling to imagine a GOP elector choosing to vote for the Democratic nominee if the Dems were to win the popular vote. And imagining a Democratic elector voting for Trump is almost impossible.
Clinton lost 5 electors (232 -> 227) and Trump lost 2 (306 -> 304) by the time the EC convened and actually voted - and that wasn't even a situation where a constitutional crisis could unfold. Of course, none of these 7 actually voted for the other major party nominee.
I think the only question in a 269-269 scenario would be whether the defections would benefit either candidate in net terms.
