U.S. Electoral College decides U.S. Presidents

I put this together for a Canadian friend who asked what is the role of the "Electoral College" in naming U.S, Presidents and VPs.

                 2016 Presidential Election primer

         Without  getting into the complicated “why”  elections are won, I set forth this synopsis of the mechanical “how” a U.S. Presidential election is decided.

          The President and VP are chosen every four years by the vote of the Electoral College. “ Huh?” is the collective reaction from some folks. “Whazzat? My vote doesn’t count?”

        “Yes, it does.” The U.S. Constitution specifies that each Congressional District (435), each U.S. Senatorial seat (100) and the District of Columbia (3) has a vote to elect the Pres. & V.P. by roll call in the Electoral College.

          Maine & Nebraska award proportional votes, depending on the actual popular votes recorded. The remaining states have a “winner take all” system. The candidate who gets the most popular vote gets all of the electoral votes for that State.

        272 electoral votes are needed to win the election. If no one achieves that total, like the 1824 Adams- Jackson election, The U.S. House of Representatives selects the next president by majority vote. In only two elections (1876 Tilden-Hayes & 2000 Gore Bush) did the person receiving the most popular votes lose the election in the electoral college.

       For a whole host of reasons, many of the 50 U.S. states have lopsided majorities of Democrats or Republicans. While there are exceptions, like the Reagan and Nixon Elections, these “red” (Republican) and “ Blue” (Dem.) states have historically delivered their electoral votes to one party of the other.

      Depending on which expert you ask, there are from eight to ten “swing states,” whose electoral votes are up for grabs. This is because the party affiliations in each are nearly equal and the majority popular vote, with its accompanying electoral vote, can go either way in a hotly contested election.

     Because of affiliations and demographics, there are at least four states that bear watching. Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania & Virginia all  have substantial electoral votes and can “go either way.” There are a half-dozen others that might fit in this category, depending upon which expert you ask.

       That means that instead of watching the totals for 175 million Americans, in 50 states and the D of C., observers will concentrate on what happens in these 8-10 “swing states.” These totals may be the tipping points that may decide the election.

                                         -30-

                                   (384 words)

                             Joseph Xavier Martin