1. Government by the Numbers Information assembled by Ms. Truemper Mount Si High School Social Studies

2. How politically savvy are you? Here’s an easy one… 1. There are ___ states in the United States of America. 2. There are ___ Senators elected from each state. 3. So…there are ___ Senators in the US? 4. Name the Senator(s) elected from our state.

3. Getting tougher 5. There are ___ Congressional Districts in Washington State. 6. There is/are ___ number of person(s) elected from each district. (These people are called United States Representatives.) 7. Where do these elected official(s) report to “work”? 8. Name the person(s) elected from your Congressional District (and political party). 9. Name the number assigned to your Congressional District. No clue? Remember, you have given yourself the freedom to participate whether you are right or wrong.

5. You want some more? 10. There are ___ Legislative Districts in Washington State. 11. There are ___ number of person(s) elected from each district. (These people are called State Senators or State Representatives.) 12. Where do these elected official(s) report to “work”? 13. Name the person(s) elected from your Legislative District (and political party). 14. Name the number assigned to your Legislative District.

8. Putting Congressional (Federal) and Legislative (State) together 15. If there are ___ Senators from Washington State (see #2), and… 16. …there are ___ U.S. Congressional Representatives from Washington State,… 17. …then there are ___ total members of the U.S. Congress from Washington State.

9. Adding up the U.S. Congress 18. Total # in the United States House of Representatives ___(all states) + 19. Total # in the United States Senate ___ (all states) + 20. Don’t forget about the District of Columbia who has ___ U.S. Representatives and… 21. … ___ U.S. Senators 22. 18 + 19 + 20 + 21= total members of Congress, which is the same number as the Electoral College

10. Government by Numbers House (435) + Senate (100) = Congress (535) House (435) + Senate (100) = Congress (535) Washington, D.C. also has 3 US Representatives, but no Senators in Congress, so the grand total is actually 538 Washington, D.C. also has 3 US Representatives, but no Senators in Congress, so the grand total is actually 538 Washington State = 2 Senators and 9 House Reps. = 11 Washington State = 2 Senators and 9 House Reps. = 11 23. How does the Electoral College work? 24. How many votes does a presidential candidate need to win? 25. Washington State has _____ votes in the Electoral College. 26. How can a presidential candidate win the “Popular Vote”, but not the “Electoral Vote”?

11. The Electoral College Each member of the Electoral College (who are all the same people from Congress) casts a vote according to how his or her state voted in the general election. Each member of the Electoral College (who are all the same people from Congress) casts a vote according to how his or her state voted in the general election. If the popular presidential vote in Washington was for a Democrat (it usually is), then all 11 Washington Electoral College votes are given to that Presidential candidate. If the popular presidential vote in Washington was for a Democrat (it usually is), then all 11 Washington Electoral College votes are given to that Presidential candidate. A presidential candidate needs half of the Electoral College votes + 1 to win A presidential candidate needs half of the Electoral College votes + 1 to win 538 / 2 = 269 + 1= 270 538 / 2 = 269 + 1= 270

12. Electoral Votes for the 2004 & 2008 Elections

13. 2000 – An historic year Nominee: George W. Bush Al Gore Running Mate: Richard B. Cheney Joe Lieberman Party: RepublicanDemocrat Home State: TexasTennessee Electoral Vote: 271 266 States carried: 30 20 + DC Popular Vote: 50,456,002 50,999,897 Percentage: 47.9% 48.4%

14. Which states does it take? 27. Name the 11 states whose Electoral College votes are enough to win a Presidential Election.

15. Answer California55Ohio20 Texas34Michigan17 New York31N. Carolina15 Florida27Georgia15 Illinois21New Jersey15 Pennsylvania 21Total 270

16. Red + Blue = Purple

17. What will 2008 look like?

18. Answers 1. 50 2. 2 3. 100 4. Patty Murray (D) and Maria Cantwell (D) 5. 9 6. 1 7. Washington, D.C. 8. Dave Reichert, (R) 9. 8 th Congressional District

19. Answers, cont. 10. 49 11. 3 12. Olympia, Wa 13. State Senator Cheryl Pflug, (R) State Representative Jay Rodne, (R) State Representative Jay Rodne, (R) State Representative Glenn Anderson, (R) State Representative Glenn Anderson, (R) 14. 5 th Legislative District 15. 2 16. 9 17. 11

20. Answers, cont. 18. 435 19. 100 20. 3 21. 0 22. 538 23. Explained in presentation 24. 270 25. 11 26. See 2000 Election example between Bush and Gore 27. In presentation