WHO ELECTS THE PRESIDENT?

The Electoral College System

In order to keep the presidency independent of Congress’s control, an electoral system was established by Article II, section 1 of the Constitution.  Under this electoral system, voters do not directly elect a president and vice president on a “one-person, one-vote” basis.  Rather, voters cast ballots for electors who cast their votes for the candidates.

An elector must meet requirements of being a qualified voter of that state, and to be eligible to serve as an elector of a party, must be affiliated with that party.  Under the U.S. Constitution, an elector must not hold the office of U.S. senator, U.S. representative, or any other federal office of profit or trust.

Candidates who receive the highest number of votes are declared winners in that elector’s state, a “winner take all” system.  Although the electors two centuries ago exercised their freedom to choose the candidates when voting in what is now the Electoral College, the function of the electors who will meet in December will essentially confirm the winning candidates of their own states.

The Electoral College is comprised of 538 electors.  This total is derived by adding together the three electors allocated to the District of Columbia to the 100 U.S. senators and 435 congresspersons in the country.  The number of electors chosen in each state is equal to the combined number of U.S. senators and representatives in Congress allocated to that state.

In more than half of the states, including Texas, the names of the presidential candidates rather than the names of the electors appear on the ballot.  In other states, both the candidates and the electors pledged to support them are included on the ballot.  In each state, the winning presidential candidate is determined by counting the votes for each slate of electors.  The slate that receives the most votes is declared to be elected.

With 32 U.S. representatives and 2 U.S. senators, the total of 34 electors makes Texas the second largest electoral vote state (California first) in the nation.

Each political party in Texas selects its slate of 34 electors at its state convention in accordance with party rules, and independent and write-in presidential candidates designate their 34 electors. Electors’ names are then placed on file in the Secretary of State Elections Office. 

The Election

To be elected to the presidency, a candidate must receive a majority of Electoral College votes, 270 votes of the total 538 votes cast.  The winning slate of electors in November corresponds to the president and vice president candidates receiving the most votes, and only those electors who are pledged to support their state’s winning candidates for president and vice president actually cast ballots at the December meeting.  The electors meet in their own states and vote for the president and vice president to which they are pledged (although the pledge is not legally binding).  The U.S. Constitution stipulates that, of the president and vice president elected, at least one of those candidates must not be from the same state as the slate of electors in that state.  As a result. the candidates for President and Vice-President may not be from the same state.

If no presidential candidate receives a majority of the Electoral College votes cast, the U.S. House of Representatives chooses the president from the candidates.  The selection is made by a vote of the state delegations in the House, with each delegation allotted one vote.  Only two presidents have been selected in this manner:  Thomas Jefferson and John Quincy Adams.  If no candidate for vice president receives a majority vote, the U.S. Senate makes the selection from the top candidates for the office.  Each senator has a single vote.

For decades, voices of political leaders and voters have expressed opinions on the suitability of the Electoral system in our present era.

Some opponents believe the present system is unfair to candidates outside the two major parties.  Of those who oppose the Electoral College, some suggest a Constitutional amendment abolishing it in favor of a popular, or “one person, one vote” presidential election, while others would prefer to retain the Electoral system with reforms to change the “winner take all” aspect.

Supporters of the Electoral system maintain that the system has worked and reflects representation.  They point out that the Electoral system ensures that all states, regardless of size and population, have a part in choosing the president; otherwise, states with larger voting populations could elect a president not supported by voters in other states. Furthermore, minority or splinter groups cannot easily move the election to the House. 

On Election Day -- Whatever views voters may hold about the Electoral College system, citizen participation in our democratic form of government is essential to making democracy work.  The League of Women Voters encourages citizens to be informed and to cast their votes in the coming election.