Keeping Burr's apathy, keeping Jefferson's threat legit, and yet having something like goading of a friend leading to Burr giving a statesmanlike speech that sways key votes in the Congress could lead to an interesting timeline.
If Burr wins, but is still pretty apathetic about it, yet maintains his reputed passion for creating a pocket empire in the West, then recognizing his victory, his Presidency, and allowing Jefferson to march on D.C. could give him the basis, as Legitimate President, to get militias in the Old Northwest and Louisiana up in arms to aid him in separating from the Eastern pretender regime.
And New England Federalists who nearly seceded OTL can actually secede, DoD style.
Basically, I think a President Burr who doesn't want to be President might use his status as prez-elect to get the doors opened to a few armories and as the basis for the secession of Louisiana and perhaps the attempted succession of the Midwest as well. The West was where he was best loved, wasn't it? And he reputedly had several plots to either detach Louisiana with British aid or create an empire out of New Mexico or so on.
If Burr was elected President and Jefferson made himself President in DC by force, would John Adams also declare himself President to join in the fun? Would Hamilton take advantage of New England secession and Burrite bleedover from the Midwest to make New York independent of all of the above? Does Pinckney's number of EV in that election show that there would be a considerable Federalist resistance in the South against Jefferson after he seized power, perhaps occupying D.C. with consolidating the South long enough for the West, New England, and New York to detach?
