The Electoral College

Electoral College An American president is not chosen directly by the people. Instead, an Electoral College is used. The Electoral College was established by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution of the USA In a close election the importance of the College grows. The electoral college is the name given to a group of "electors" who are nominated by political activists and party members within the states.

How does the Electoral College work? Each state has a number of electors in the Electoral College equal to the total of its US senators (always two) and its representatives, which are determined by the size of the state's population. California, the biggest state, has 55 electoral votes. A few small states and the District of Columbia have only three. There are 538 electors in the College. In all but two states, Maine and Nebraska, the College works on a winner-takes-all basis. The winner of the popular vote in a state gets all the Electoral College votes in that state. How the Electoral College Works

How does the Electoral College work? To become president, a candidate needs 270 Electoral College votes. The winning candidate does not need to win the national popular vote. The Electoral College never meets. On the first Monday after the 2nd Wednesday in December they send results to the Vice-President who announces them to a joint session of Congress in January. In January 2001, VP Al Gore had to announce his own defeat ECVs 2012 Al Gore announces own defeat

Advantages of the Electoral College The Electoral College usually reflects the popular vote. It also gives greater weight to smaller states – without EC votes of smaller states would be worthless. The system tends to produce a 2 horse race – it is deemed important that winner receive majority of popular vote

Disadvantages of the Electoral College Small states are over-represented: California has 55 ECVs for pop of 34 million; Wyoming has 3 ECVs for pop of 0.5 million Distorts results due to ‘winner takes all’. In 2008 Obama received 52.7% of pop vote and 67.8% of ECVs It is possible to win the popular vote and lose the election (Al Gore in 2000; Hillary Clinton in 2016) Unfair to 3rd parties – in 1992 Ross Perot won 18.9% of pop vote but not a single ECV In cases of deadlock, the HofR decides President and Senate decides VP – could be of different parties

Reform the Electoral College? ECVs are split along lines of Congressional districts and additional 2 votes are given to winner of popular state vote ( currently used in Maine & Nebraska) Allocate of ECVs in proportion to % of vote received in State (would make it difficult to reach 270) Direct election – Recent opinion polls show most Americans would favour a move to a directly elected President ONLY A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT COULD BRING ABOUT ANY REAL REFORM TO THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE SYSTEM – THEREFORE UNLIKELY Al gore on Electoral college

1984 Presidential Election Ronald Reagan (Republican) easily won re-election. He won 49 out of 50 states in the Electoral College. He was seen to have revitalised the American economy and brought pride and prestige back to the USA Walter Mondale was a former democratic Vice President

1988 Presidential Election George H. W. Bush ran with the backing of Reagan. No candidate since 1988 has managed to equal or surpass Bush's share of the electoral or popular vote. Dukakis won 45.6% of the popular vote Bush became the first sitting vice president to be elected president since Martin Van Buren in 1836.

1992 Presidential Election Bush had alienated many in his own party by going back on his previous campaign promise not to raise taxes. Clinton focused on the economy – the country was in a deep recession – which won over many voters. This is most recent incident of when an incumbent first term president has been defeated. Ross Perot, an Independent from Texas, polled well for a large portion of the Presidential race however he did not receive any Electoral College votes

1996 Presidential Election Despite initially being viewed as having a slim chance of gaining re-election, Clinton’s policies started to revitalise the economy in 1995 and his opponent, Bob Dole, made several gaffes on the campaign trail. Clinton became the first Democrat since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win two straight elections.

2000 Presidential Election The election mainly focused on domestic issues such as taxes and social insurance problems. Texas governor and former President's son Bush was popular although VP Gore criticised his lack of national experience. One of the most controversial elections of recent times, it was unclear on election night who has actually won as Florida failed to declared who had received its ECVs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3os_Vw1Eoo The returns showed that Bush had won Florida by such a close margin that state law required a recount. With the end of the recount, Bush won Florida by a margin of .009%, or 537 votes. Ultimately, Bush won 271 electoral votes, one more than was necessary for the majority, and narrowly lost the popular vote to Gore.

2004 Presidential Election Foreign policy dominated the election following the 9/11 attacks. Although Bush’s popularity had suffered due to his conduct of the Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq he pitched himself as a decisive leader in comparison to Kerry who was known as a “flip-flopper”. This election also resulted in a narrow defeat/win.

2008 Presidential Election A historic election for many reasons – Barack Obama becomes the first African American to be elected President. The campaign initially focused on the ongoing Iraq War (Obama opposed, McCain supported) however it soon focused on financial issues following the banking crisis of September 2008. As of the 2016 presidential election Obama's total vote amount of 69.5 million votes still stands as the highest number ever won by a presidential candidate. Yes We Can

2012 Presidential Election Campaigning mainly focused on domestic issues such as the Affordable Care Act and the federal budget. Foreign Policy was also an important issue as the phase out of the Iraq War continued. Obama defeated Romney although his popularity was not as striking as in the previous election.

Should the Electoral College be reformed, abolished or left as it is?