1. Electing the President of the United States
ELECTORAL COLLEGE
Electing the President of
the United States

2. Electoral College and the Constitution
Article II, Section I, Clause II

3. Electoral Votes
-When you vote for the President you are actually voting for an ELECTOR to vote for you
-Each state has a determined number of electors
Why do you think the Founding Fathers implemented this system?

4. There are a total of 538 electoral votes
(the District of Columbia is not a state but is given 3 electoral votes)
* 23rd Amendment *

5. A state’s number of electors is the total number of Senators and Representatives in the House
OHIO
2 senators
16 representatives
Total 18 electors

6. Electoral College Votes by State

7. 48 out of the 50 states have a “winner takes all” method
If you get the most votes in that state you get ALL of their electoral college votes

8. 2 states are different and can divide up their votes based on congressional district - Nebraska and Maine

9. Discover how Nebraska and Maine are different from the other 48 states when it comes to the Electoral College

10. A candidate must have 270 electoral votes to win the Presidential election

11. If no single candidate gets the required 270 electoral votes then the House of Representatives votes to decide the President.

12. It is possible to get more votes overall in the election from the entire country and NOT be elected President
WHAT? HOW?

13. Total Votes in 2000 Election:
Bush 50,461,092 total votes
(47.9%)
271 Electoral Votes
Gore 50,994,086 total votes
(48.4%)
266 Electoral Votes
Nader 2,882,728 total votes
(2.7%)
0 Electoral College Votes

14. 2000 Presidential Election

17. Presidential Election Results

18. Develop an analogy to the Electoral College using Baseball’s World Series.

19. Electing the President Response
How do you think the President of the United States should be elected?
1. Do you think the Electoral College system should be kept? Why? What do you think are some advantages and disadvantages of the system?
2. Do you think a new system should be introduced? Explain how you think the president should be elected! Why don’t you think the current system should be kept?