Electoral College Defined.
The Electoral College consists of a group of elected representatives called elicitors who represent each of the states and who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president of the United States.
The United States system for electing a President and Vise president is known as an indirect election. Individual citizens do not vote for president or vise president directly; rather they vote for electors to represent their State and cast presidential votes in their behalf. Voters cast ballots for favored presidential and vice presidential candidates by voting for electors who have pledged to vote for those candidates. The candidate winner takes all the votes in the state; weather the candidate wins the state by 50.1% of the vote or by 90% ether way they receive all of the votes.
There are a total of 538 electors selected to participate in each presidential election. Article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution specifies how many electors each state is entitled to have and each state’s legislature decides the manner in which its electors will be chosen.
So how does the Electoral College work? The number of members in both Houses of Congress determines the Electoral College’s size. There are 435 Representatives and 100 Senators as well as three electors allocated to Washington, D.C. bringing the total number of electors to 538. Each state receives as many electors as it has members of Congress, consisting of Representatives in the House and Senators. The States with the highest population receive the most seats in the House of Representatives and therefore also have the most electors.
In order to win the presidency or vice-presidency A candidate must receive an absolute majority of the votes. Currently 270 electoral votes are needed to obtain the absolute majority.
The map located in the sidebar shows the number of electors allocated for each state.
The Electoral College consists of a group of elected representatives called elicitors who represent each of the states and who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president of the United States.
The United States system for electing a President and Vise president is known as an indirect election. Individual citizens do not vote for president or vise president directly; rather they vote for electors to represent their State and cast presidential votes in their behalf. Voters cast ballots for favored presidential and vice presidential candidates by voting for electors who have pledged to vote for those candidates. The candidate winner takes all the votes in the state; weather the candidate wins the state by 50.1% of the vote or by 90% ether way they receive all of the votes.
There are a total of 538 electors selected to participate in each presidential election. Article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution specifies how many electors each state is entitled to have and each state’s legislature decides the manner in which its electors will be chosen.
So how does the Electoral College work? The number of members in both Houses of Congress determines the Electoral College’s size. There are 435 Representatives and 100 Senators as well as three electors allocated to Washington, D.C. bringing the total number of electors to 538. Each state receives as many electors as it has members of Congress, consisting of Representatives in the House and Senators. The States with the highest population receive the most seats in the House of Representatives and therefore also have the most electors.
In order to win the presidency or vice-presidency A candidate must receive an absolute majority of the votes. Currently 270 electoral votes are needed to obtain the absolute majority.
The map located in the sidebar shows the number of electors allocated for each state.
