The Electoral College Craig Grimm ED 639

Electoral College - 12 Grade Government 1) What is the Electoral College? 2) Why was it created? 3) Does it work?

Indirect v. Direct Voting A direct voting system allows citizens to actually cast their vote for elected officials. EX: Local Elections An indirect voting system allows citizens to vote for a panel who will then cast their vote for an elected official. EX: Electoral College

What is the Electoral College?? The Electoral College is a group of representatives elected through the popular vote. These electors represent individual states in electing the President of the United States

Historical Importance of the Electoral College Established in the Constitution of the United States in an attempt to create a representative voting system. Larger states have a larger electoral vote in order to maintain a percentage based voting system.

Did our founding fathers have faith that the American people would make wise decisions when electing the President??

How many Electors for each State? Each state has a set number of Electors determined by adding the number of Senators (2) with the number of Representatives in the House. Washington DC has 3. WHY?

Ohio has 18 Representatives in the House, plus 2 Senators. Ohio has 20 Electoral College votes.

How are Electors Selected? Each candidate selects their own electors for each state. The candidate who receives the most popular votes in a state will win its electors. (Exception: Maine and Nevada)

Ohio - 20 Electoral Votes George W. Bush - 20 Electors for OH Al Gore - 20 Electors for OH Ralph Nader - 20 Electors for OH Pat Buchanan - 20 Electors for OH

The Winner of each state sends only his Electors to vote for the President. Each set of electors meets in their respective state capitols to cast their vote.

The electors meet on the Monday after the 2nd Wednesday in December of Presidential election years to vote. President of the Senate (VP) counts the official votes.

Winning in the Electoral College There are 538 total electoral college votes. A majority of the electoral vote is needed to win. 270 electoral votes are needed to win.

Winning in the Electoral College If a majority is not won, no candidate is awarded the Presidency. The House of Representatives will then vote to determine who the winner is. Each state has 1 vote, and the reps from that state must determine how their state will cast their vote.

DOES THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE WORK ?? Vs.

Problem #1 - Population California - 54Penn New York - 33Illinois - 22 Texas - 32Ohio - 21 Florida - 25Mich States = 223 Electoral College Votes

Problem # 2 - Small States Are less populated states given equal representation without the Electoral College? Should they be given equal representation?

What is the SOLUTION?

Student Related Activities 1) Register to Vote - Students will work online and visit the sites specific web sites in order to register to vote. Each student will complete the appropriate form and print an additional copy to turn in at the end of class. 2) US Constitution Worksheet - Students will use this primary document to determine the rights guaranteed to various individuals and organizations. Students will complete the worksheet by listed what Article and what Section each statement was originated.

Electoral College Map - Each student will evaluate the Electoral College map from the 2000 Presidential Election and answer a series of questions regarding its validity, usefulness, and their personal opinion of the process. Bonus Quiz - Students will attempt to answer VERY difficult questions concerning previous Presidential Elections. Completion of this assignment will take considerable research on the part of the students, and each question answered correctly will earn that student 1 bonus point. Mini Research Project - Each student will prepare a 3-5 page research project on one of the 43 presidents, and will be required to present that material to the rest of the class. Each paper should include biographical information, success and/or failure in the election process, and various interesting facts about his Presidency.

Electoral College Websites The Electoral College - This web site includes interactive maps, charts and graphs that will help to develop understanding of the Electoral College. Why the Electoral College? - This site answers basic questions about the foundation and usefulness of the Electoral College. It also shows distributions of electoral college votes over the 50 states.

Does it Work? - This is an excellent site that allows the reader to investigate freely the concepts of the Electoral College, and ask questions if necessary. CNN Presidential Coverage - CNN has established a very effective web site that deals with the controversial issues of the 2000 election. Electoral College Breakdowns - Maps of both state EC distributions and the breakdowns of past Presidential Elections.