Let's start at the beginning
On Tuesday, November 8th, Americans will vote for President and Vice President.
When they vote, they are actually choosing Presidential Electors.
Known collectively as the Electoral College
These electors will then choose the next President and Vice President.
So, how does the Electoral College work? And when was it established?
Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution, as ammended by the 12th Ammendment in 1804,
sets the requirements for election of the President and Vice President.
Who are the electors? Who may serve as an elector?
The constitution says who electors may NOT be. It prohibits members of the House and Senate,
As well as any person who is an employee of the U.S. Government.
In practice, the two political parties tend to nominate a mixture of well known figures, such as governors,
State and Local elected officials and Party Activists.
In most states, the names of elector candidates do not appear anywhere on the ballot.
How is the number of each state's Presidential electors determined? And how are they chosen?
The number of electors in each state is the total of the two Senators, plus the number of Representatives.
48 States use a winner-take-all system, so the candidate that wins the Popular vote.
then wins the total number of Electoral votes in that state.
There are two exceptions. Maine and Nebraska use the District System, with two electors for the state-wide popular vote
and one elector for the winner of the popular vote in each Congressional District.
The total number of electors if 538.
435 for the number of House members, 100 for the number of Senators,
And 3 electors for the District of Columbia.
It takes 270 Electoral Votes to win.
Since 1864, the voters have directly chosen electors in all states.
A tradition that has become a permanent feature of the Electoral College system.
Are Presidential electors bound by law to vote for the candidates of the party that nominated them?
The electors have followed the will of the public since the first decade under the Constitution.
Only eight individual electors since 1948 have broken their commitment,
but they have never influence the outcome of an election.
Has the Electoral College ever chosen Presidents who received fewer popular votes than their opponents?
Yes! In 1824, 1876, 1888, and most recently in 2000.
As George W. Bush received approximately 500,000 fewer popular votes than Albert Gore, Jr.
But received a majority of the Electoral votes to become the 43rd President.
What happens if there is a tie, or no candidate receives a majority of the Electoral College?
If no candidate recieves a majority of Electoral votes, the House of Representatives elects the President,
from the three Presidential candidates who received the most Electoral votes.
Each state delegation has one vote, the Senate would elect the Vice President, and each Senator would cast one vote for Vice President.
In this election year, what is the timeline of key dates for the Election and the Electoral College?
November 8th is General Election Day.
December 19th the Electoral College meets. State delegations of electors meets separately in their state House or Capitol building.
And January 6th, 2017, the Senate and House of Representatives assemble in joint session to count the Electoral votes.
January 20th, the President and Vice President are inaugurated.
Thanks for watching and don't forget to vote!
