Unit IV Lesson 10

Presidential Elections Part III

Essential Questions:

• How are rules or laws that govern the election process beneficial to the citizens of America?

• What are the most important factors in determining the outcome of an election?

2

1

3

Step 4 in the Presidential Election Cycle: *The Electoral College

“General Election”

“General Election”

“General Election”

“General Election”

Article II Section 1

“Electoral College

16 Electoral

Votes

Article II Section 1:

“Each state shall appoint a NUMBER of electors equal to the number of representatives and senators it has in Congress…”

Electoral Votes

First

“Electors”

All States

1,773,827

“Popular Vote”

ALL

16 Electoral Votes

2,078,688

Loser

“Winner-Take-All”

The Electoral College is a “winner-take-all” system; the candidate who wins the popular vote wins ALL of that states

electoral votes and the loser receives NONE*

16 Electoral Votes 0 Electoral Votes

*Except for Nebraska and Maine which do the smart thing and split their electoral votes based on the

winner in each congressional district

1 1 2

Democratic Voters Tend To: *Live on the East or West Coast or in “Urban Areas” (Big Cities). California, New York, and

other coastal areas have historically been solidly Democrat

Unit II

38

Electoral

Votes

Swing States (“Battleground States” or “Purple States”)- States where the political race between Democratic and Republican candidates is extremely

close and whose winner usually decides a presidential election

“Swing States” or “Battleground States”

2016

270

538

Presidential candidates must receive at least 270 electoral votes in order to win the election and become “President Elect” (270 = A majority of the 538 total votes possible)

270 270

“Majority”

538

There is one potentially BIG problem with the Electoral College

Obama Romney

PopularVote 2,827,621 2,661,407

ElectoralVote 18 0

“Winner-Take-All System”

2012

“Swing State”

Obama Romney

Electoral Votes

332 206

224

2012

18 270

2000 Election

“Popular Vote”

Biggest flaw in the Electoral College- Because states award votes on a “winner-take-all” basis a candidate could win the “popular

vote” nationally and still not become president

“Popular Vote”

“Electoral Vote”

“Popular Vote”

2012

“President Elect”

January 20th

The “President Elect” is voted into office in November but is sworn in and begins his term (“inaugurated”) on January 20th

(20th Amendment to the Constitution)

November March 20th Amendment

In order to win a presidential election a candidate must:

A. Receive a majority of the votes in the electoral college

B. Receive a majority of the popular votes

C. Receive a unanimous vote from the electoral college

D. Receive a plurality of the popular vote

Which of the following statements about the Electoral College is correct?

A.Each state is equally represented in the Electoral College B.The Electoral College was created by an amendment to the Constitution C.Each state’s delegation of electors consists of that state’s actual U.S. Senators and Representatives D.The results of electoral college voting can distort the winner’s margin of victory when compared with the popular vote for President

The main reason why the popular vote and the electoral vote for president may be very different

is:

A. There is a large amount of corruption in American politics

B. The candidates focus their campaigns only a few key swing states

C. Small states have more power in the Electoral College than their population would merit

D. The winner-take-all system most states use in selecting electors distorts a candidate's margin of victory

Which of the following outcomes is NOT possible in the Electoral College system?

A. The House of Representatives could choose the president

B. The Electoral College could choose a president who did not win the popular vote

C. A political party could choose a congressman to serve as one of its electors

D. The Senate could pick a vice-president other than the candidate’s running mate

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ok_VQ8I7g6I