How does voting work in America? Your guide to the Electoral College

Every day’s a school day. That’s what they say, anyway. ‘They’ aren’t always right, though. Only today we’re not going to school. We’re going to college. Electoral College…

Alright, so we’re not actually going anywhere. The US Electoral College isn’t an actual place. Which is a shame when you consider the standard of some of the presidents and presidential candidates that America has had over the past couple of decades. A few of them could’ve benefitted from some further education.

The electoral college is, instead, the voting system used in presidential elections in the United States to determine who gets to swan around using Air Force One as their own personal sky Uber.

So, if you’ve been wondering how voting works in America, we’ve got all the answers…

How does voting work in America?

Election Day in the US is always held on the first Tuesday after November 1, but many Americans cast their vote early. In fact, more than 50 million have this year.

Most states allow people to vote in person at polling places before Election Day, while some states also offer mail-in voting, where voters receive their ballot in the post and send it back before the deadline.

But when voters fill out their ballot, they’re not technically voting for their choice of president.

In reality, they’re voting for state electors. That’s right, they’re electing the electors to elect the president.

If it sounds confusing, that’s because it is. Let’s take a closer look…

What is the US Electoral College?

Although the winner of the US Election is decided by the votes of the American public, it’s an indirect vote. They don’t just count them all up and announce a winner. No, that would be far too straightforward. Instead, they use a slightly more complicated arrangement. Just, it might appear, to keep everyone on their toes.

Known as the Electoral College, it’s more of a state-by-state race, really. 538 electoral ‘votes’ are up for grabs and distributed among states based on their population. Instead of a direct popular vote, states award their electoral votes – usually all of them – to the candidate who wins the state’s vote. 

A candidate needs 270 electoral votes to get that all-important promotion to be able to brag about on LinkedIn.

Why was the Electoral College created?

The system was established way back in 1787 as part of the US Constitution, during something called The Constitutional Convention. The Founding Fathers faced the challenge of creating a fair system to elect the president in a new, diverse and rapidly-changing nation. They debated between a simple direct popular vote and having Congress choose the president. The Electoral College became something of a compromise. 

Its primary aim was to prevent larger, more populous states and regions from dominating the election, while ensuring that folk living in smaller states still had a say over who governed them.

How does the Electoral College work?

In the Electoral College, each state gets ‘electors’ or votes based on its congressional seats (which is largely in line with its population size). Voters choose these electors tied to a specific candidate. 

So, for example, Florida has 30 electoral votes in the system (out of 538). If a candidate wins the popular vote there (even by a tiny margin like 50.1%), they get all 30 electoral votes chucked into the tally bucket. They only need another 240, and they’re elected.

What are ‘Swing States’?

Swing states are states in US presidential elections where no candidate or party is clearly going to win, making them unpredictable. Unlike so-called ‘safe’ states that regularly vote for the same party (like Texas or California), swing states can be won by either the Democrats or Republicans. 

Because of this, they receive much more attention from candidates during campaigns. Winning a swing state can be pivotal in securing enough electoral votes to win the presidency.

What happens if there’s a tie?

Though it hasn’t happened in the modern era, it is possible for no candidate to receive the required 270 electoral college votes to win the election.

Fortunately, there is a plan in place, should this ever happen. It’s known as a ‘contingent election’. In this scenario, the House of Representatives, one of the two chambers in US Congress, votes for the president.

Each state is given just one vote – regardless of population size – meaning states with multiple representatives must vote together. A majority of 26 must be achieved to become president.

There have been three occasions where the US has undergone a contingent election. The first was in 1801, when Thomas Jefferson was elected, then in 1825 to pick President John Quincy Adams, and finally in 1837 to elect Vice President Richard Mentor Johnson.

Why is the Electoral College controversial?

The Electoral College is often considered somewhat controversial because it can lead to outcomes where the candidate who wins the popular vote doesn’t become Commander-in-Chief, undermining the fundamental principle of democratic representation. Critics argue that the system disproportionately values votes in swing states and diminishes the influence of voters in heavily partisan states.

By way of an example, in the 2016 election, Hillary Clinton won the popular vote (she received more votes by sheer number) but ultimately lost the presidency to Donald Trump due to the Electoral College.

Ironically, Trump had previously criticised the system back in 2012, saying, ‘The electoral college is a disaster for a democracy.’ Although he likely changed his mind on that four years later. Mind you, he also lost the 2020 election. So perhaps his final assessment on its efficacy will come in a few weeks’ time. Best of three kind of thing.

While at least half of the country is usually reluctant to agree with former President Trump, the general sentiment of his criticisms of the electoral college does highlight the concerns many people have about the fairness and effectiveness of using it to determine who’s voted in. Mostly because it raises questions about whether or not every vote truly matters. Calls for reform, including a shift to a much more basic national popular vote, continue to gain traction as debates over electoral fairness continue to persist.

Of course, most of the moaning comes from the party that’s frozen out of power for the next four years. The winning mob tends to keep fairly schtum about how unfair the system might be.

What is the future of the Electoral College?

It’s impossible to say. While the Electoral College system may not be perfect, it does still address some of the concerns raised by the Founding Fathers back in the day. And therein lies the rub… It’s cooked into the Constitution. Meaning it’s not easily changed. 

Any amendments or scrapping would require cross-party agreement and a vote. And once you’ve won a competition using a set of rules, changing those rules isn’t really going to be your priority, is it?

This article was first published on October 23, 2024.

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