Omar Bennett
The Electoral College is a process by which the United States elects the President and Vice President. The term electoral college does not appear in the US Constitution, but the process is part of the original design of the US Constitution. The Founding Fathers established the Electoral College in the Constitution as a compromise between the election of the President by a vote in Congress and the election of the President by a popular vote of qualified citizens.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Does the term "Electoral College" appear in the Constitution? | No, the term "electoral college" does not appear in the Constitution, although it is part of the original design of the U.S. Constitution. |
| Number of Electors | 538 |
| Electors | Electors are chosen in the general election by voters in each state. |
| Elector Vote | Electors vote for the President and Vice President. |
| Counting of Electoral Votes | Congress meets in a joint session to count the electoral votes. |
| Majority Electoral Votes | A majority of 270 electoral votes is required to elect the President. |
| Certificate of Ascertainment | The State Executive of each state signs the Certificate of Ascertainment to appoint the electors. |
| Constitutional Amendments | Over the past 200 years, more than 700 proposals have been introduced in Congress to reform or eliminate the Electoral College. |
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What You'll Learn
The Founding Fathers established the Electoral College
The Electoral College process includes the selection of electors, the meeting of the electors where they vote for President and Vice President, and the counting of the electoral votes by Congress. Electors are chosen in the general election, and the State Executive of each State signs the Certificate of Ascertainment to appoint them. The appointed electors then meet to select the President and Vice President of the United States. Finally, Congress meets in a joint session to count the electoral votes.
The term "electoral college" does not appear in the Constitution, but Article II and the 12th Amendment refer to "electors." The process is part of the original design of the U.S. Constitution, and any change would require a Constitutional amendment. Over the past 200 years, there have been more than 700 proposals in Congress to reform or eliminate the Electoral College.
The Electoral College has faced criticism for consigning most states to "spectator" status in presidential elections, reducing voter turnout, and polarizing the nation's politics. On the other hand, supporters argue that it preserves state-based federalism and ensures that Presidents have nationwide support.
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The Electoral College is a process, not a place
The Electoral College is a process by which the United States elects the President and Vice President. It is a system of choosing the President that involves electors from each state. The term "electoral college" does not appear in the US Constitution, although it is a part of the original design of the Constitution. Instead, Article II of the Constitution and the 12th Amendment refer to "electors".
The Founding Fathers established the Electoral College in the Constitution as a compromise between the election of the President by a vote in Congress and election of the President by a popular vote of qualified citizens. The Electoral College consists of 538 electors, including Washington, D.C.'s three electors. Each state gets as many electors as it has members of Congress (both the House and Senate). Each state's political parties choose their own slate of potential electors, and the process by which they are chosen varies by state.
The Electoral College process involves the selection of electors, the meeting of the electors where they vote for President and Vice President, and the counting of the electoral votes by Congress. The electors meet in their states in mid-December to cast their votes. A majority of 270 electoral votes is required to elect the President.
The Electoral College has been a source of political controversy and has undergone significant constitutional, legislative, and political changes over the years. There have been many proposals to reform or eliminate the Electoral College, as it has been criticised as "archaic" and "ambiguous". However, it continues to be supported by some as preserving an important dimension of state-based federalism in presidential elections.
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Electors are chosen by each state
The term "electoral college" does not appear in the US Constitution. However, the process of using electors to choose the president and vice president is outlined in the document. The selection of electors is left to the states, and each state has its own method of choosing electors.
The electors in each state are chosen by the winning candidate's state political party. Generally, the parties nominate slates of potential electors at their state party conventions or choose them by a vote of the party's central committee. Electors are often chosen to recognize their service and dedication to the party. They may be state elected officials, state party leaders, or individuals with a personal or political affiliation with the party's candidate.
Each state has a specific number of electors, equal to the number of members in its Congressional delegation. This includes one elector for each member in the House of Representatives plus two senators. The District of Columbia is allocated three electors and is treated like a state for Electoral College purposes under the 23rd Amendment of the Constitution.
Most states have a "winner-take-all" system, where all electors are awarded to the presidential candidate who wins the state's popular vote. However, Maine and Nebraska have a variation of "proportional representation," where electors are assigned based on the winner of the popular vote in each congressional district.
The selection of electors is an important part of the Electoral College process, which was established by the Founding Fathers as a compromise between the election of the President by a vote in Congress and a popular vote of qualified citizens. While the Constitution does not require electors to follow the popular vote, it is rare for electors to disregard it.
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Electors meet to select the President and Vice President
The Electoral College is a process that was established by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution as a compromise between the election of the President by a vote in Congress and the election of the President by a popular vote of qualified citizens. The term "electoral college" does not appear in the Constitution, but the process of using electors does come from the Constitution.
The Electoral College process consists of three steps: the selection of electors, the meeting of electors where they vote for President and Vice President, and the counting of electoral votes by Congress. The electors, or members of the Electoral College, meet in their respective states on the first Tuesday after the second Wednesday in December to cast their votes for President and Vice President. This meeting usually takes place in the state capital, and the location is designated by the state legislature.
Each candidate running for President in a state has their own group of electors, known as a slate. These electors are chosen by the candidate's political party, but state laws vary on how electors are selected and what their responsibilities are. Most states have a ""winner-take-all" system, where all electors are awarded to the candidate who wins the state's popular vote. However, Maine and Nebraska have a variation of "proportional representation."
After the electors meet and cast their votes, the President of the Senate declares who has been elected President and Vice President of the United States. The President-elect then takes the oath of office and is sworn in as President on January 20th in the year following the general election.
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The Electoral College has faced criticism and calls for reform
The Founding Fathers established the Electoral College in the Constitution as a compromise between the election of the President by a vote in Congress and the election of the President by a popular vote of qualified citizens. However, the term "electoral college" does not appear in the Constitution. The process has faced criticism and calls for reform since its establishment.
The Electoral College has been criticised as "archaic" and "ambiguous" by the American Bar Association, and polling showed that 69% of lawyers favoured abolishing it in 1987. Public opinion polls have also shown majorities in favour of abolishing it, with 58% in 1967, 81% in 1968, and 75% in 1981. Over the past 200 years, more than 700 proposals have been introduced in Congress to reform or eliminate the Electoral College.
One criticism of the Electoral College is that it treats votes unequally, giving them more or less weight based on where voters live. This encourages campaigns to focus their efforts on a handful of swing states and can result in the candidate who loses the popular vote winning the presidency. This has happened five times in US history, including in 1824, 1876, and 1888. In 2016, Hillary Clinton received 2.87 million more popular votes than Donald Trump, yet Trump won the election with 304 electoral votes to Clinton's 227.
Critics also argue that the Electoral College consigns most states to "spectator" status in presidential elections, reducing voter turnout and dramatically polarising the nation's politics. The Electoral College also removes the direct election of the President, as citizens are voting for a panel of representatives rather than a candidate. This can result in the Electoral College rejecting the popular choice of the nation, as electors are not required to cast their votes in favour of the candidate they pledged to support.
Proposed reforms to the Electoral College include constitutional amendments for direct popular elections, with some proposals including a run-off provision if no candidate receives 40% in the first round. The National Popular Vote Plan is another proposal to address the problems of the Electoral College without amending the Constitution. However, supporters of the Electoral College argue that it preserves an important dimension of state-based federalism and guarantees that Presidents will have nationwide support. They also argue that the system is stable and unlikely to fail the people, and that without it, there is a risk of a candidate winning by a minority vote.
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Frequently asked questions
No, the term "electoral college" does not appear in the US Constitution.
The Constitution mentions a process of selecting "electors" who then vote for the President and Vice President.
The Electoral College is a process, not a place, by which the United States elects the President and Vice President.
Voters in each state choose electors to serve in the Electoral College. These electors then meet and vote for the President and Vice President.
While the Constitution does not require electors to vote for the candidate chosen by their state's popular vote, some states do.
