The Electoral College

What is the Electoral College

Simple way of thinking about it: The States Elect the President..

Even though we can tally up a national popular vote, there are really 50 separate

elections taking place through the Electoral College to decide our President (1 in

each state)

Check out this video on the electoral college

Basics of the Electoral College

Each State is given a certain number of electors based on its population

Number of electors the same as the number of representatives in Congress

(# of house representatives + # of senators)

Bigger the State = More electors (Proportional Representation)

Example – California electoral votes – 53 representatives + 2 sentators = 55 total

Example – Alaska electoral votes – 1 representative = 2 senators = 3 total

23rd Amendment gave Washington DC 3 electors (same as smallest state)

538 possible electoral votes currently – 535 in House/Senate plus 3 for

Washington DC = 538

Who are the Electors?

The way electors are chosen can vary by state.. But the Constitution provides for the following rules

Electors may not be current elected/appointed federal officials

Usually are trustworthy people who will vote with the wishes of the state, however no requirement that they have to do so

Electors are typically voted on during election day based on the presidential candidate being voted on (in most states)

Usually electors are preselected from each political party in the summer by state officials, then the electors from the winning party in the state’s popular election will be invited to the capital to officially vote for the state as an elector in December.

Basics of Electoral College

President needs to receive a majority of the electoral votes to win

Currently 270 votes required to be elected President (538 possible

electoral votes available)

In most states the candidate that wins the popular vote receives ALL

the electoral votes, only Maine and Nebraska split up electoral votes

Electors do NOT have to vote based on state results, but in all but a few

cases, have historically voted based on their state’s wishes

Step 1 – Popular Vote

(Nov.)

Step 2 – (Dec.)

Electors from

each state vote

(based off

popular vote)

Step 3 – (Dec.) State officially sends

its electoral results to Congress

Step 4 – (Jan) US

Congress officially

counts the electoral

votes for President to

determine winner of

the election

Mock Election

• Candidate A. – Free Kit-Kats for Everyone!

• Candidate B. – Free Reeses Peanut Butter Cups for Everyone!

Mock Election Electoral Votes

State/# of Electoral Votes Candidate Winning Election Popular Votes

1. 20 Reeses Reeses wins 8-7

2. 16 Kit Kat Kit Kat wins 10-2

3. 12 Reeses Reeses wins 5-4

4. 9 Kit Kat Kit Kat wins 6-1

5. 6 Kit Kat Kit Kat wins 5-2

6 3 Kit Kat Kit Kat wins 4-1

7. 14 Reeses Reeses wins 9-8

Elecoral Vote: Reeses wins

46-34

Popular Winner: Kit Kat wins 44 - 28

Why Create the Electoral College?

Some reasons why the Founding Fathers created the Electoral College

Give smaller states more voting power, so candidates can’t ignore smaller states

Candidate cannot just campaign at large population centers, but also must be successful in rural

areas and suburbs

Electors were educated and could make the best possible choice

The electors could make a different decision than the general population

Keep in mind much of the general population in 1790 didn’t have much information about candidates,

many lived without access to TV, Internet, and other sources of media

Logistically, very difficult to accurately determine a nationwide vote in 1790

Maintain Federalism – give each state the power to choose its electors and vote for who it wants to

be President

Negatives of the Electoral College

Some people believe the Electoral College system should be changed or abolished:

The Electoral College gives smaller states more voting power since all states get a minimum of 3 electoral votes

The “winner take all” system means that candidates can lose the popular vote but still win the electoral vote

People who live in a state where their candidate is unpopular may feel like their vote does not count, and thus won’t show up to vote.

The electors can change their votes and not vote the way the state wanted them to (faithless electors)

Candidates may only focus on a few bigger “swing states” that can decide an election.