Once Upon a Government Electoral College

Who should win? (Democrat) 50,999,897 (Republican)50,456,002

The Beginning The Framers stated in the Constitution, that a group of selected Electors will choose the U.S. President Later the name “Electoral College” was attached

How does it work? The Constitution states that the # of Electors will equal the # of members in Congress Plus the 23rd Amendment gives DC 3 votes A total of 538 Electoral Votes Each state gets the same # of Electoral votes as they have members in Congress

How does it work? The General Election is held “The first Tuesday following the first Monday in November, even numbered years” During the Presidential year we go to the Poll to select a candidate By selecting the candidate, we are actually choosing the Electors

How does it work The President is NOT chosen by Popular Vote directly The Electors, however, do vote for whichever candidate won the popular vote in their state 34 States have laws requiring this Winner –Takes – All = Means that Electoral votes are NOT split between candidates The candidates either wins all the Electoral Votes in a state or NONE

Georgia How many Electoral Votes does Ga get 16, Why? The # is equal to the # of members we have in the US Congress

Why not Popular Vote If we used Popular Vote, then the top populated states could choose the President every time and there would be no point in the smaller states voting With the Electoral votes, the entire nation has a say so 2000 Election Gore v. Bush

Electoral Votes There are a total of 538 The MAGIC # to win is 270!!!! If there is a tie, the House of Representatives would break the tie

What happens next Certificates (with the Elector’s names) called “Certificates of Ascertainment” are submitted the Governor should be sent by December 15th. Electors should have cast their vote in the sealed envelope by December 24th---- The elector count of envelopes will be made by January 3rd. The President of the Senate receives the votes—Congress will open and count each vote on January 6th .

Inauguration The new or incumbent candidate takes the Oath of Office on January 20th at noon Incumbent = returning/current candidate

Elections Primary Elections = held to narrow down candidates to ONE per party Primaries are not elections against the other party They usually last Jan -June Primaries help the political parties see who has the best chance of winning Once the primaries end, each Political Party holds a Convention to official announce their candidate RNC and DNC

Elections General Elections When we actually vote on the final candidates in November What all do we vote for? Senators, House members, Electors, Judges, Governors, Referendums, etc General (BIG) Elections are held every even numbered year When it’s not a presidential year, we refer to this as “Off Year” Elections

Other Elections Special Election – held for very specific reasons Ex – someone dies or is removed Run-Off Election – a candidate did not receive 51% or more of the vote the first time. They hold another election

Elections Your State can also hold elections in Odd numbered years Mayor, Sheriff, etc

Political Spectrum When talking about Political views use the following terms, NOT the political party Conservative Liberal

Liberal v. Conservative Tend to be more open minded Favor more government assistance Do not follow “old” ways Accepts ideas like abortion, gay marriage, b/c they feel it should be the PERSON”S CHOICE, not the Gov’t choice Shy away from Religion Liberals TEND to vote Democrat Conservative Seen as “old fashioned” Less gov’t assistance Religion is necessary to curb evil Tend to be against abortion and gay marriage Favor Religion Conservatives TEND to vote Republican

Liberal v. Conservative Again, do not label your self with a party Just because you may have more Liberal ideas, doesn’t mean you can’t have some Conservative ideas….and ViseVersa

Political Parties

Political Parties Two popular parties in US. Republican Democrat There are also less popular THIRD parties Green, Tea, Libertarian Mascots R = Elephant D = Donkey

U.S. Political Spectrum Which side of the spectrum do liberals and conservatives fall? This is where we get the terms “Right Winged” and “Left Winged”

The Issues I will list a number of different issues that are hot topics in our society and we will discuss which side Liberals tend to take and which side Conservatives tend to take

The Issues Abortion Liberals: Pro – Choice It is a woman’s right to choose Should be legal Conservatives: Pro – life It should not be legal There are plenty of other options

The Issues Gun Control Liberals: More gun control laws are needed Too many violent crimes with guns Conservatives Oppose gun control laws Protection of 2nd Amendment

The Issues Military Liberals Decrease in military spending Tend to oppose War on Terrorism Conservatives Increase military spending Tend to be For War on Terrorism

The Issues Gay Rights Liberals Supports gay rights and civil liberties - Right to Choose Not the gov’t place to tell you who you can marry Conservatives Believe marriage should be between a man and a woman Biblical View

The Issues Death Penalty Liberals Do not agree with taking someone's life as a means of discipline Conservatives The death penalty is a necessary evil to curb violent crimes

The Issues Prayer in School Liberals Separation between church and state No prayer in school—it’s ok to pray if you choose, but not forced Conservatives It’s apart of our nation’s culture to place prayer in school Rise in immorality in schools without prayer

How can I vote? Each state sets requirements –but most are the same GA 1. Be a citizen of the United States 2. Be a legal resident of Georgia and of the county in which you want to vote 3. Be 18 years old within six months after the day of registration, and be 18 years old to vote, 4.Not be serving a sentence for having been convicted of a felony 5. Not have been judicially determined to be mentally incompetent, unless the disability has been removed

Where do I register? You can register online, the DMV, and other government buildings You will receive a voter registration card—tells you polling place What if I forget Polk County Election Supervisor Polk County Administration Bldg. 144 West Avenue Cedartown, GA 30125 Telephone: (770) 749-2103 Fax: (770) 749-2194