The electors, collectively called the Electoral College, cast votes to determine the president and vice president of the United States. While voters in the general election vote for president and vice president as a package, the electors cast separate ballots for president and vice president.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Below are answers to six questions about electors, the people who make up the Electoral College.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are few eligibility restrictions. Article II, section 1, clause 2 of the Constitution states electors cannot be members of Congress or hold federal office. The 14th amendment, ratified in 1868 post-Civil War era, disqualified state officials who engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the United States:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“No person shall be\u2026 elector of President and Vice President\u2026 who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
2. Who are the people serving as electors?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Electors are often retired politicians, people with personal connections to candidates, state lawmakers, activists, or political party officials. Some electors may be public figures or known names, while others are political party loyalists without wide name recognition. Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, Jr., for example, were nominated by their parties as electors in the 2016 election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. How many electors are there?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
There are 538 electors, and a candidate needs a majority of those votes, 270, to win the election. If no majority is reached, the House of Representatives chooses the president.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution dictated that each state would get a number of electors equal to its Congressional representation. Each state gets 2 senators (50 states x 2 = 100); there are 435 voting members of the House of Representatives; and the 23rd amendment granted Washington, DC, three electoral votes. 100 + 435 + 3 = 538 electoral votes total<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since electoral votes are tied to Congressional representation, the total number of electors changed as the size of the House of Representatives grew over the years. However, the number of representatives has been set at 435 since Public Law 62-5 took effect in 1913, and there have been 538 electoral votes since 1964, the first presidential election after the 23rd amendment was ratified in 1961. Click the link to learn more about the apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives<\/a> over the history of the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
4. How are electors chosen?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The state political parties nominate a slate of electors for their presidential candidate. The process is not detailed in the Constitution, so it varies by state. The nominations are typically made at the state party convention or by leaders of the state political parties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Independent candidates who get on the ballot by filing signed petitions as well as declared write-in candidates also designate a slate of electors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the general election, voters are actually casting their votes for a candidate\u2019s slate of electors. In most states, the party of the candidate who wins the popular vote is awarded all of the electors, a system known as \u201cwinner-takes-all.\u201d In Maine and Nebraska, the statewide winner gets two electors and the rest are awarded to the popular vote winner in each congressional district.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In early presidential elections, the electors were chosen by state legislatures instead of statewide popular vote. The practice of selecting electors who pledged themselves to a party ticket began to take shape in the 1800 election. The 1824 presidential election was the first in which a majority of states designated electors by popular vote. By 1872, every state held a popular vote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
5. What rules or laws apply to the electors?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
No federal law exists requiring electors to vote in accordance with their state\u2019s popular vote results. In 33 states and Washington, DC<\/a>, the electors are bound by law or oath to vote for their party\u2019s candidate. The laws in those states require electors to vote for the party that nominated them or have them sign a pledge or oath to do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n