The USA presidential election course of is a posh one, and the Electoral School performs a key function in figuring out who turns into president. On this article, we’ll present a complete overview of how the Electoral School works, from the allocation of electors to the precise voting course of.
The Electoral School is a physique of 538 electors, appointed by every state and the District of Columbia, who’re tasked with electing the president and vice chairman. The variety of electors every state receives is predicated on its inhabitants, with extra populous states having extra electors. The allocation of electors is set by the census, which is performed each ten years.
How Does the Electoral School Work
The Electoral School is a system through which the president of the US is elected by electors, fairly than by a direct standard vote.
- Electors Allotted by Inhabitants: Every state is allotted quite a few electors primarily based on its inhabitants.
- Electoral Votes: The candidate who wins the favored vote in a state wins all of that state’s electoral votes.
- 538 Whole Electors: There are a complete of 538 electors, with the District of Columbia additionally having 3 electors.
- Majority Wins: To change into president, a candidate should win a majority of electoral votes (presently 270 out of 538).
- Contingent Election: If no candidate wins a majority of electoral votes, the Home of Representatives chooses the president.
- Uncommon Incidence: The contingent election has solely occurred twice in U.S. historical past (1800 and 1824).
- Electoral School Criticism: Some argue the Electoral School is undemocratic and might result in a president profitable with out the favored vote.
- Requires Reform: There have been calls to reform or abolish the Electoral School, however no modifications have been made.
The Electoral School system has been part of the U.S. presidential election course of because the nation’s founding, and whereas it has been criticized, it stays the tactic used to elect the president.
Electors Allotted by Inhabitants: Every state is allotted quite a few electors primarily based on its inhabitants.
The variety of electors every state receives is set by its inhabitants, with extra populous states having extra electors. This allocation is predicated on the census, which is performed each ten years. The District of Columbia can also be allotted three electors, despite the fact that it isn’t a state.
The entire variety of electors is 538, which is the sum of the variety of representatives and senators every state has in Congress, plus the three electors from the District of Columbia. This quantity was set by the Twelfth Modification to the U.S. Structure in 1804.
The allocation of electors is designed to make sure that all states have a say within the presidential election, no matter their inhabitants. Nevertheless, this method has been criticized for giving extra weight to the votes of individuals in smaller states, since every state’s electors are awarded on a winner-take-all foundation.
For instance, within the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump gained the Electoral School vote, despite the fact that Hillary Clinton gained the favored vote by practically 3 million votes. This was as a result of Trump gained in additional states, despite the fact that he misplaced the favored vote in these states. This has led to calls for改革 the Electoral School and even abolishing it altogether.
Regardless of the criticism, the Electoral School stays the tactic used to elect the president of the US. It’s a advanced system, however it’s designed to make sure that all states have a say within the election, no matter their inhabitants.
Instance: Within the 2020 presidential election, California had probably the most electors with 55, whereas Alaska had the fewest with 3. It’s because California has a a lot bigger inhabitants than Alaska.
Electoral Votes: The candidate who wins the favored vote in a state wins all of that state’s electoral votes.
This is called the “winner-take-all” system. It signifies that even when a candidate wins the favored vote in a state by a really slender margin, they nonetheless win all of that state’s electoral votes. This technique is designed to make sure that the candidate who wins probably the most votes in a state is the one who will get all of that state’s electoral votes.
For instance, within the 2020 presidential election, Joe Biden gained the favored vote in Michigan by simply over 150,000 votes. Nevertheless, as a result of he gained the favored vote in Michigan, he gained all of Michigan’s 16 electoral votes. That is the case despite the fact that Donald Trump gained extra counties in Michigan than Biden did.
The winner-take-all system has been criticized for giving an excessive amount of energy to swing states, that are states the place the election outcomes are sometimes very shut. It’s because a candidate can win the presidency by profitable a number of swing states, even when they lose the favored vote total. This has occurred 5 instances in U.S. historical past, most just lately in 2016 when Donald Trump gained the Electoral School vote however misplaced the favored vote to Hillary Clinton.
Regardless of the criticism, the winner-take-all system stays in place in most states. There are a number of states which have adopted a proportional system, through which the electoral votes are divided proportionally between the candidates primarily based on their share of the favored vote. Nevertheless, these states are the exception, and the winner-take-all system remains to be the commonest method of awarding electoral votes.
Instance: Within the 2020 presidential election, Biden gained the favored vote in Pennsylvania by over 80,000 votes. This meant that he gained all of Pennsylvania’s 20 electoral votes, despite the fact that Trump gained extra counties in Pennsylvania than Biden did.
The winner-take-all system can typically result in a scenario the place a candidate wins the presidency with out profitable the favored vote. This has occurred 5 instances in U.S. historical past, most just lately in 2016.
538 Whole Electors: There are a complete of 538 electors, with the District of Columbia additionally having 3 electors.
The entire variety of electors is set by the Twelfth Modification to the U.S. Structure, which was ratified in 1804. The modification states that the variety of electors “shall be equal to the entire variety of Senators and Representatives to which the a number of States could also be entitled within the Congress.”
- Variety of Electors per State: Every state is allotted quite a few electors equal to its variety of representatives within the Home of Representatives plus its two senators. For instance, California has 53 representatives and two senators, so it has a complete of 55 electors.
- District of Columbia Electors: The District of Columbia just isn’t a state, however it’s nonetheless allotted three electors. It’s because the Twenty-third Modification to the U.S. Structure, which was ratified in 1961, gave the District of Columbia electors within the presidential election.
- Whole Variety of Electors: The entire variety of electors is 538, which is the sum of the variety of electors from every state and the District of Columbia.
- Majority Wanted to Win: To change into president, a candidate should win a majority of electoral votes (presently 270 out of 538).
The variety of electors has remained at 538 since 1964, when Alaska and Hawaii grew to become states. Previous to that, the variety of electors was 537.
Listed here are some extra factors in regards to the 538 electors:
- Electors are chosen by every state’s political events.
- Electors are usually get together loyalists who’re pledged to vote for his or her get together’s nominee.
- Electors meet of their respective states on the primary Monday after the second Wednesday in December to forged their votes for president and vice chairman.
- The outcomes of the Electoral School vote are then despatched to Congress, which meets on January 6 to depend the votes and certify the outcomes of the election.
Majority Wins: To change into president, a candidate should win a majority of electoral votes (presently 270 out of 538).
A candidate must win a majority of electoral votes with a purpose to change into president. Which means they should win no less than 270 electoral votes out of the whole 538 electoral votes. If no candidate wins a majority of electoral votes, then the Home of Representatives chooses the president from among the many prime three candidates who acquired probably the most electoral votes.
The bulk vote requirement is designed to make sure that the president has a transparent mandate from the American folks. It additionally helps to stop a scenario the place a president is elected with solely a small plurality of the favored vote. This occurred in 1824, when John Quincy Adams was elected president despite the fact that he gained solely 30.9% of the favored vote. Adams gained the election within the Home of Representatives after no candidate gained a majority of electoral votes.
The bulk vote requirement has been criticized for giving an excessive amount of energy to swing states. Swing states are states the place the election outcomes are sometimes very shut. Which means a candidate can win the presidency by profitable a number of swing states, even when they lose the favored vote total. This has occurred 5 instances in U.S. historical past, most just lately in 2016.
Regardless of the criticism, the bulk vote requirement stays in place. It’s a key a part of the Electoral School system, and it helps to make sure that the president has a transparent mandate from the American folks.
Instance: Within the 2020 presidential election, Joe Biden gained 306 electoral votes, whereas Donald Trump gained 232 electoral votes. Which means Biden gained a majority of electoral votes and have become president, despite the fact that Trump gained extra counties than Biden did.
