Section 8.10Resolution:

The Electoral College

Without creating a structure for how to elect the president, there would be a greater chance for _________________

Without purposefully creating ORDER in how to elect the president, there would be a great chance for chaos/DISORDER.

The Electoral College After about 60 votes, the framers reached another

compromise. Neither congress nor the people would choose the vice president and the president.

The Electoral College, made up of electors, would elect the president and vice president.

Each state had as many electors as senators and representatives it sends to Congress.

How many Senators does each state have?

How many Representatives does each state have in the House?

How is the number of electors calculated for the Electoral College?

___________ + ________________ = ________________________________

These votes were called electoral votes.

Each state decided how they would choose electors. Before 1820, state legislatures chose electors in most states. Today, the people choose their state’s electors when they vote in the presidential elections.

The electors then cast their ballots for president and vice president.

Originally, the electors voted for two candidates without saying who they preferred for president or vice president.

This caused confusion (disorder) in the election of 1800 so was changed later.

Whoever received the most votes became president, and the runner-up became vice president.

Today we have TV, Internet, and computers. It is easy to find any information we want.

But back in the 1700’s, these technologies did not exist.

Today, more Americans are educated, and can be smart voters if they choose to be.

Political Parties and Elections A big concern was that voters would not know

enough about candidates outside of their own state.

Within a few years of the convention, political parties were educating voters about candidates.

Today… The Electoral College still affects today’s elections. In

most states, the candidate who gets the most popular votes wins all of the state’s electoral votes.

For more information about the Electoral College, visit… http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/about.html

Controversial elections: http://archive.fairvote.org/e_college/controversial.htm

For example, George W. Bush won in 2000 by getting the electoral votes without getting most of the popular votes.

So a candidate can win the majority of Electoral votes without winning the majority of popular votes.

• How does the Electoral College create order in voting for our President?