How is it decided how many electoral votes

Each state is allocated a number of electoral votes based on the total size of its congressional delegation. This benefits smaller states, which have at least three electoral votes — including two electoral votes tied to their two Senate seats, which are guaranteed even if they have a small population and thus a small House delegation. Based on population trends, those disparities will likely increase as the most populous states are expected to account for an even greater share of the U.

In the aftermath of the presidential race, Donald Trump and his allies fueled an effort to overturn the results of the election, spreading repeated lies about widespread voter fraud. Additionally, during the certification process for the election, some members of Congress also objected to the Electoral College results, attempting to throw out electors from certain states. While these efforts ultimately failed, they revealed yet another vulnerability of the election system that stems from the Electoral College.

Abolishing the Electoral College outright would require a constitutional amendment. As a workaround, scholars and activist groups have rallied behind the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact NPV , an effort that started after the election. Under it, participating states would commit to awarding their electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote. In other words, the NPV would formally retain the Electoral College but render it moot, ensuring that the winner of the national popular vote also wins the presidency.

If enacted, the NPV would incentivize presidential candidates to expand their campaign efforts nationwide, rather than focus only on a small number of swing states.

For the NPV to take effect, it must first be adopted by states that control at least electoral votes. In , Maryland became the first state to enact the compact. As of , a total of 19 states and Washington, DC, which collectively account for electoral votes, have joined. The public has consistently supported a nationwide popular vote. A poll by Pew Research Center, for example, found that 58 percent of adults prefer a system in which the presidential candidate who receives the most votes nationwide wins the presidency.

The new book explores the history of constitutional amendments and reminds us who really wrote the Constitution. Electoral votes are allocated among the States based on the Census. Every State is allocated a number of votes equal to the number of senators and representatives in its U. Congressional delegation—two votes for its senators in the U.

Senate plus a number of votes equal to the number of its Congressional districts. The founders struggled for months to devise a way to select the President and Vice President. The Electoral College resulted from this debate. Each state has as many "electors" in the Electoral College as it has Representatives and Senators in the United States Congress, and the District of Columbia has three electors.

When voters go to the polls in a Presidential election, they actually vote for the slate of electors who have vowed to cast their ballots for that ticket in the Electoral College. Most states require that all electoral votes go to the candidate who receives the most votes in that state.

After state election officials certify the popular vote of each state, the winning slate of electors meet in the state capital and cast two ballots—one for Vice President and one for President. The founders hoped this rule would prevent the largest states from dominating presidential elections. In the modern era, faithless electors are rarer still, and have never determined the outcome of a presidential election.

House of Representatives About this object In the presidential election, James Garfield narrowly won the popular vote but swept the Electoral College in the Midwest and Northeast. Since the midth century, Congress has met in a Joint Session every four years on January 6 at p.

The sitting Vice President presides over the meeting and opens the votes from each state in alphabetical order. In primaries, party members vote in a state election for the candidate they want to represent them in the general election. After the primaries and caucuses, each major party, Democrat and Republican, holds a national convention to select a Presidential nominee.

The Presidential candidates campaign throughout the country to win the support of the general population. When people cast their vote, they are actually voting for a group of people called electors.

The number of electors each state gets is equal to its total number of Senators and Representatives in Congress. A total of electors form the Electoral College. Each elector casts one vote following the general election. The candidate who gets votes or more wins.

An election for president of the United States happens every four years on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. The most recent presidential election was November 3, The election process begins with primary elections and caucuses.

These are two methods that states use to select a potential presidential nominee Nominee: the final candidate chosen by a party to represent them in an election. In general, primaries use secret ballots for voting.

Caucuses are local gatherings of voters who vote at the end of the meeting for a particular candidate. Then it moves to nominating conventions , during which political parties each select a nominee to unite behind. During a political party convention, each presidential nominee also announces a vice presidential running mate. The candidates then campaign across the country to explain their views and plans to voters.

They may also participate in debates with candidates from other parties. During the general election General Election: a final election for a political office with a limited list of candidates. But the tally of those votes—the popular vote—does not determine the winner. Instead, presidential elections use the Electoral College. To win the election, a candidate must receive a majority of electoral votes.

In the event no candidate receives a majority, the House of Representatives chooses the president and the Senate chooses the vice president. Summer of the year before an election through spring of the election year — Primary and caucus Caucus: a statewide meeting held by members of a political party to choose a presidential candidate to support.