Electoral College Map

Where is California? Where is Florida? Where is New York? Where is Texas? Where is North Carolina?

Congress Review (Under Important Information) House of RepresentativesSenate Word Box: Based on population 100 people Equal representation by state 435 people 2 per state

I. Electoral College Background a. Electoral College=group of representatives who elect the President and the VP -We vote for an ELECTOR to vote for the candidate we want

-Fill in the blanks: This means that the American public (DOES/DOESN’T) actually vote for the President and the VP in the (PRIMARY/GENERAL) election

b. Number of Electors Per State= # of Representatives + # of Senators (from HoR) -Note: Electors are NOT the same people as Senators and Representatives!

3.Electoral College Math State# of Reps# of Senators # of Electors NC 132 CO 72 CA 55 WY 3

3.Electoral College Math State# of Reps# of Senators # of Electors NC CO 729 CA WY 123

4. Why does CA have so many Electors? Why does WY have so few?

c. There are 538 total Electors…HOW? ­ = 538 US Reps Senators ?Electors d. President must get 270 electoral votes to WIN

5. Where do the 3 “extra votes” come from? Think about the 23 rd amendment… 6. True or False: Electoral College members are the same people as Senators and Representatives ______________________

II. How Do Electors Choose? a. First: Regular people vote for who they want to be President in the general election -This is called the popular vote because the whole USA votes for who they want to be president.

7. When do American voters make the popular vote? 8. REVIEW: Fill in the chart below for each political party. LeftRight Party Party Animal Liberal or Conservative? Color

LeftRight PartyDemocratRepublican Party AnimalDonkeyElephant Liberal or Conservative? LiberalConservative ColorBlueRed

b. Second: The popular vote is calculated in each state separately and the “winner takes all” of the electoral votes for the state -Winner takes all: The candidate who wins the majority of the votes in a state wins all of that state’s electoral college votes.

-Winner Take All: In each state, the candidate with the MOST popular votes will win (SOME/ALL) of the electoral vote*

9. Examples of Winner Take All: StatePopular Vote Obama McCain Electoral Vote NC50%49% CO54%45% CA43%57% SC45%54% 10. Quick Question: Why do the percentages NOT add up to 100% for each state above?

11. *What two states are an exception to the “winner takes all” approach? What does this mean? Nebraska Maine

-The winner does not need a majority; he just needs a plurality of votes. -Plurality=Receive the most number of votes -Majority=Receive at least 50% of vote

12. Plurality v. Majority Candidate ACandidate BP or M: Who Wins 60%40% 45%20% 70%10% 33%32%

c. Third: The Electoral votes are added up across the country -The candidate who gets the majority (over 50%) of the Electoral Votes becomes the President!

13. REVIEW: Fill in the chart below: How many electoral votes are there total? How many must a presidential candidate win to get a majority?

IV. Polls -how we measure public opinion and see what people think  people fill out a survey -Exit polls=surveys we give to people after they vote see who they voted for

14. Why do we give exit polls? 15. Does everyone take an exit poll after voting?