Is a site that gives basic definitions to the terms. And I'm sure someone will come along that can give a condensed "Elections 101" synopsis.
My personal opinion is, that in this day and age of the computer - there is absolutely no reason why the popular vote cannot prevail. I think as time goes on this may happen. I hope so anyway; why should 5 people from my state decide for me who should be my nominee, or my President???
In the entire time I've voted (32 years), I have been disgusted with the Electoral College, and I sincerely hope it goes away someday.
Ron, I hope this will explain things without going into all the details and nuances.
Delegates
Every Presidential election year, the Republicans and Democrats each have a big party to decide whom they will nominate to run for President. These parties are called conventions.
If you have watched part of a convention on television, you may have noticed that there are a bunch of people there who are whooping it up, grouped together by states (and US territories). The people are called delegates. A group of delegates from any states is that state's delegation.
States with a lot of people, like California, get a lot of delegates. States without a lot of people, like Montana, do not get very many delegates.
Whichever candidates first receives a majority of the delegates' votes is the party's candidate for President. Sometimes this happens on the first ballot (first time they vote) at the convention.
There is a second ballot at the convention if nobody wins a majority of the delegate votes. This might happen if there are more than two legitimate candidates. If there is a second ballot, all kinds of deals are being made ... you know, "If your candidate promises to make my candidate his/her Vice Presidential running mate, then I'll switch my vote to your guy" etc.
Primaries
People vote in the primaries to tell the delegates in their state whom to vote for. Most of the delegates are locked in to voting for that person on the first ballot at the convention.
Electoral College
The electoral college has nothing to do with the primaries or party conventions. The electoral college is made up of "electors" from each state. Again, states with a lot of people get a lot of electors. The actual number each state gets is the total of its US Senators and Representatives.
These electors vote for President after the national election results are in. Each has pledged to vote for a particular candidate based on how the residents of his or her state voted.
Posts: 7600 | Location: in the backwoods of North Carolina | Registered: 06-07-02
"These electors vote for President after the national election results are in. Each has pledged to vote for a particular candidate based on how the residents of his or her state voted."
Unless things have changed recently, not every state requires its electoral college to vote for the winner of the popular vote of that state. Electors who do not vote for the winners of their state are called "faithless electors."(This rarely happens.)
Another thing to be aware of is that most (if not all) states are "winner-take-all" states. That means that, if Candidate A wins a state by just 1 vote, he (or she!) gets all of that state's electoral votes. If, in that same election, another state with the same number of electoral votes has Candidate B winning a huge majority of that state's votes, she (or he!) gets all of that state's votes. Thus, a candidate who got the most combined votes in those two states just breaks even in the electoral college. This can, and has, happened in the past so that the winner of the national popular vote still lost in the electoral college.
Later, in this, or another thread, I'll show you how the electoral college system actually means that a voter in some states has more of a voice in who gets electedthan a voter in other states.
Posts: 16539 | Location: Lincoln Place, Granite City, IL, USA | Registered: 06-03-02
