Who are the electors in the Electoral College?

When people cast their vote, they are actually voting for a group of people called electors. The number of electors each state gets is equal to its total number of Senators and Representatives in Congress. A total of 538 electors form the Electoral College. Each elector casts one vote following the general election.

Is the Electoral College a two party system?

There can be no doubt that the Electoral College has encouraged and helps to maintain a two- party system in the United States. This is true simply because it is extremely difficult for a new or minor party to win enough popular votes in enough States to have a chance of winning the presidency.

What is representation in the Electoral College based on?

Electoral votes are allocated among the States based on the Census. Every State is allocated a number of votes equal to the number of senators and representatives in its U.S. Congressional delegation—two votes for its senators in the U.S. Senate plus a number of votes equal to the number of its Congressional districts.

Who are the electors and how are they chosen?

Who selects the electors? Choosing each State’s electors is a two-part process. First, the political parties in each State choose slates of potential electors sometime before the general election. Second, during the general election, the voters in each State select their State’s electors by casting their ballots.

Has a third party ever won an electoral vote?

In the 59 presidential elections since 1788, third party or independent candidates have won at least 5.0\% of the vote or garnered electoral votes 12 times (21\%); this does not count George Washington, who was elected as an independent in 1788–1789 and 1792, but who largely supported Federalist policies and was …

Why the Electoral College was created?

The Electoral College was created by the framers of the U.S. Constitution as an alternative to electing the president by popular vote or by Congress. Several weeks after the general election, electors from each state meet in their state capitals and cast their official vote for president and vice president.

Why does California have 55 electoral votes?

There are a total of 538 electoral votes, and the number of votes each state receives is proportional to its size — the bigger the state’s population the more “votes” it gets. For California, this means we get 55 votes (2 senators and 53 members of the House of Representatives) — the most of any state.

What happens if neither gets 270?

Presidential election If no candidate for president receives an absolute majority of the electoral votes, pursuant to the 12th Amendment, the House of Representatives is required to go into session immediately to choose a president from among the three candidates who received the most electoral votes.