What to know about the electoral college
Published: 04:11 PM,Nov 04,2024 | EDITED : 08:11 PM,Nov 04,2024
Electoral College votes are brought forth for certification at a joint session of the U.S. Congress. — NYT file photo
Voters are already casting ballots for local offices, state legislators, governors, every member of the US House and one-third of the US Senate. They are also choosing the next president, but with a twist: Americans will actually select the electors, who will, in turn, elect Kamala Harris or Donald Trump and their running mates. Yes, there are really two elections: one in which voters cast their ballots, and a second in which the electoral votes are cast and counted. Or, in other words, the winner of the most votes nationally is not assured victory.
This is the way it has been done for more than 200 years, and it is likely to endure, even though a majority of Americans would prefer to have the winner of the most votes nationally rise to the presidency. The Electoral College is made up of 538 elected members, one for each US senator and US representative, plus three for Washington, D.C. A presidential candidate needs to win a simple majority of them (270) to win the White House. The electors meet and cast votes for president and vice-president in mid-December.
With an even total number of electors, it is possible to have a tie (269-269). In that case — which happened in 1801 — the decision goes to the freshly elected House of Representatives, with each state voting as one unit. The newly elected Senate decides on the vice-president, with one vote per senator. “This is a very unique and bespoke system that I think nobody would create again today,” said Wendy R. Weiser, vice-president for democracy at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law School.
In the summer of 1787, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia were deadlocked on how to select a president. Instead of electing a president by a vote in Congress or by a popular vote of citizens — who at the time were all white, landowning men — they compromised and agreed to have electors.
The delegates believed that the electors would ensure that only a qualified person became president. They also believed that this approach would serve as a check on the public, which might easily be swayed by misinformation, especially from foreign governments.
Each state’s number of electors is equal to the number of senators and representatives in its congressional delegation, so the minimum is three. In 48 states, the winner takes all the electoral votes. In Maine and Nebraska, two electoral votes are apportioned to the winner of the popular vote, and each remaining electoral vote is awarded to the winner of the popular vote in each of the state’s congressional districts. After a state’s electors have certified the vote in December, they send a certificate to Congress. Congress then counts and certifies the vote on January 6. The vice president presides over a special session as the results from each state are recorded.' — NYT
This is the way it has been done for more than 200 years, and it is likely to endure, even though a majority of Americans would prefer to have the winner of the most votes nationally rise to the presidency. The Electoral College is made up of 538 elected members, one for each US senator and US representative, plus three for Washington, D.C. A presidential candidate needs to win a simple majority of them (270) to win the White House. The electors meet and cast votes for president and vice-president in mid-December.
With an even total number of electors, it is possible to have a tie (269-269). In that case — which happened in 1801 — the decision goes to the freshly elected House of Representatives, with each state voting as one unit. The newly elected Senate decides on the vice-president, with one vote per senator. “This is a very unique and bespoke system that I think nobody would create again today,” said Wendy R. Weiser, vice-president for democracy at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law School.
In the summer of 1787, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia were deadlocked on how to select a president. Instead of electing a president by a vote in Congress or by a popular vote of citizens — who at the time were all white, landowning men — they compromised and agreed to have electors.
The delegates believed that the electors would ensure that only a qualified person became president. They also believed that this approach would serve as a check on the public, which might easily be swayed by misinformation, especially from foreign governments.
Each state’s number of electors is equal to the number of senators and representatives in its congressional delegation, so the minimum is three. In 48 states, the winner takes all the electoral votes. In Maine and Nebraska, two electoral votes are apportioned to the winner of the popular vote, and each remaining electoral vote is awarded to the winner of the popular vote in each of the state’s congressional districts. After a state’s electors have certified the vote in December, they send a certificate to Congress. Congress then counts and certifies the vote on January 6. The vice president presides over a special session as the results from each state are recorded.' — NYT