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Understanding the Electoral College

Everything you ever wanted to know about America’s byzantine system for selecting a president.

Alex Dalenberg

Read when you’ve got time to spare.

This is the first part in Pocket’s guide to the Electoral College. For a roundup of the best arguments for and against the system, as well as possible alternatives, see Debating the Electoral College.

American presidential elections are a strange beast. When Americans go to vote for their preferred presidential candidate in November of election years, they are actually voting for the state electors who have pledged to support that candidate in the Electoral College. Only in December do the 538 members of the Electoral College cast their votes for president, officially deciding who will take the oath of office in January.

Read on to understand how the Electoral College works, its history and evolution, and other quirks of America’s unique system for electing a president.

Image by Keith Lance/Getty Images

The Road to the White House Is Through the Electoral College. How Does It Work?

In the United States, a presidential candidate is elected not by winning a majority of the national popular vote but through a system called the Electoral College, which grants electoral votes to the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on their population.

The Race Is so Close. Here’s What Happens If There’s a 269-269 Electoral College Tie

It’s very unlikely — but theoretically possible — that the presidential election ends with an Electoral College tie. If it did come to pass, here’s how the next president would be determined.

Podcast: The Electoral College

What is it, why do we have it, and why hasn't it changed?

Why Was the Electoral College Created?

The Founding Fathers had to compromise when it came to devising a system to elect the president.

No Country Still Uses an Electoral College − Except the US

Every other country that used an electoral college has been unsatisfied with the results and chosen another way to pick a leader.

The Evolution of the Electoral College

Today’s process would be unrecognizable to the nation’s founders, who imagined it as an indirect and deliberative system with considerably narrower public participation.

How Much Does Your Vote Weigh?

The electoral college outcome doesn’t always reflect the popular vote, but that’s not the only factor that determines how influential your vote is.

Presidential Battleground States Change All the Time

In politics, as in military conflict, there is a tendency among generals and journalists alike to fight the last war. But battlegrounds often change.

Why Electoral College Landslides Are Easier To Win Than Popular Vote Ones

The very nature of the way the U.S. picks its presidents tends to create a disconnect between the outcome in the Electoral College and the popular vote.

When Republicans Were Blue and Democrats Were Red

The notion that there were “red states” and “blue states”—and that the former were Republican and the latter Democratic—wasn’t cemented on the national psyche until the year 2000.

Debating the Electoral College

A roundup of the best arguments for and against America’s unique system for electing a president. Plus, a look at possible alternatives.