U.S. Government and Civics / Unit 9: Political Parties, Elections and Interest Groups
9.3 The Electoral College
Notes
Voters elect the president indirectly through the Electoral College.
- Each state gets electors equal to its House seats plus two senators. Washington, D.C., has 3 (23rd Amendment).
- Total: 435 + 100 + 3 = 538 electors. A candidate needs a majority, 270, to win.
- In 48 states and D.C., the candidate who wins the state's popular vote gets all its electors (winner-take-all). Maine and Nebraska award some electors by congressional district.
- The 12th Amendment (1804) requires separate electoral votes for president and vice president.
- If no one wins 270, the House chooses the president, with each state delegation casting one vote; the Senate chooses the vice president.
- A candidate can win the Electoral College while losing the national popular vote, as happened in 1824 (decided by the House), 1876, 1888, 2000 and 2016.
- Campaigns focus on swing states, where either party could win.
Practice
How many electoral votes are needed to win the presidency?
270 is a majority of the 538 electors.
A state has 8 representatives in the House. How many electoral votes does it have?
Electors equal House seats plus two senators: 8 + 2 = 10.
No candidate wins a majority of electoral votes. Who chooses the president?
The 12th Amendment sends the election to the House.
Ready for more? Take the Unit 9 test.