What 's The Electoral College

The Electoral College is the system used to elect the President and Vice President of the United States. Here are the key points about how it works:

1. Basic Structure:

• The Electoral College consists of 538 electors

• A candidate needs at least 270 electoral votes (more than half) to win the presidency

• Each state gets a number of electors equal to its total number of Senators (always 2) plus Representatives (varies by population)

• For example, California currently has 55 electoral votes, while smaller states may have as few as 3

1. How Voting Works:

• When citizens vote in a presidential election, they're actually voting for electors who will cast votes for president

• In most states, the candidate who wins the popular vote gets ALL of that state's electoral votes (winner-take-all system)

• For example, if a candidate wins 50.1% of the vote in Texas, they receive all of Texas's electoral votes

1. The Process:

• After the general election, each state's governor signs a Certificate of Ascertainment to officially appoint the electors

• The electors meet in their respective states to cast their votes for President and Vice President

• These votes are then sent to Congress, the state secretary of state, the U.S. Archivist, and federal district court

A candidate can win the presidency without winning the popular vote nationwide. This has happened five times in U.S. history, most recently in 2016 when Donald Trump won the presidency despite receiving nearly 3 million fewer total votes than Hillary Clinton