Understanding the Electoral College by Rick Kern
Thu, Feb 21, 2008 Do the people of the United States really elect their president by majority vote? Theoretically, yes but technically, no. The presidency is not determined by a nationwide count of voters, but instead our Chief Executive is elected by each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Consequently, your individual vote is not actually a ballot for the presidential candidate of your choice but for “Electors” who will vote for the contender they are associated with politically. Welcome to the Electoral College, the axis upon which our presidential contest revolves.
Established in 1787, the Electoral College was the net effect of a debate by the Framers of the Constitution over the best way for our fledgling nation to choose its leader. With hometown concerns, political posturing, and unreliable voting methods potentially compromising the process, our Founding Fathers were reluctant to give the people the power of the popular vote. Thus after considering several concepts, including majority vote by the people, Congressional ballot, and state legislatures choosing, Article II Section1 of the Constitution became home to the Electoral College. Subsequently, the process of how this voting body gathers and casts their ballots was modified by the 12th Amendment in 1804.
While not found in the Constitution, the term “college” is frequently misunderstood as referring to a school. However, in its constitutional framework it is used in its purest form meaning a structured body of people united toward a common purpose. And though we hypothetically cast a vote for the presidential candidate of our choice, in reality our vote is for the person of an Elector who is pledged to support a specific person’s quest for the presidency with their vote.
Electors typically cast their ballot for the candidate who has received the most votes in their state. Nonetheless, there have been occasions when they have voted against the will of their citizenry, which is completely legal.
By and large the candidate who wins the popular vote also wins the numbers from the Electoral College, but that is not always the case. Historically there have been a few elections where the candidate who did the best at the voting booth still lost the keys to the White House though those elections could be counted on one hand.
There are 538 Electoral College voters compromised of each state’s congressional body, senators and representatives, which varies according to the state's population. The District of Columbia, which has no congressional delegation, is allowed the legal minimum which is three votes. The candidate with the majority, or 270 Electoral College votes, wins the presidency.
Should no candidate garner a majority of the electoral votes, the House of Representatives votes for the president and the Senate chooses the vice president based upon existing procedures.
Ironically, it is not on Election Day in November, but the Monday following the second Wednesday in December that the votes are technically cast for the president and vice president. It is then that the Electors of each state meet in their individual state capitals to formally vote for the next occupant of the White House. The results are sealed and forwarded to the President of the Senate, who presides at a joint session of Congress on January 6th where they are opened and read. The election is then officially decided by a majority of the total Electoral College vote and the winner is publicly sworn into office at noon on the 20th of January.
Both the Democratic and Republican parties formally nominate their respective presidential candidates at their national conventions. These highly publicized events are attended by party delegates, most of which are chosen during primaries and caucuses.
The majority of states participate in a binding primary meaning that the results of the election legally bind some or all of the delegates to vote for a specific candidate at the national convention, along with additional mandates. A few states however, practice a non-binding primary in which candidates are selected to a state convention from which delegates are then selected.
Both parties have a number of unpledged delegates chosen through various state-party procedures. These unpledged delegations are given tremendous autonomy and not required to vote for the candidate that received the most votes from their state. In fact, unpledged delegates are allowed to change their vote at any time before the national convention.
And while Republican unpledged delegates are predominantly top party officials, the Democratic Party has a much broader faction called “superdelegates.” Since 1984, rules have been in place providing that senators, House members, governors, and party activists who are members of the Democratic National Committee are permitted to vote at the convention.
Superdelegates can support whichever contender they want, flip flop back and forth between candidates, or wait until the convention to obligate themselves. Many of them have not yet committed their vote, and Congress is reported to have its own campaigning going on behind the scenes with the neck and neck contest Obama and Clinton are embroiled in.
For example, Senator Ted Kennedy’s public support of Barak Obama will no doubt yield intense efforts to gain superdelegate votes from the Senate. Similarly others are lobbying for Clinton. Additionally, Rep. John Lewis of Georgia, a superdelegate, is reported to have withdrawn his assurance to vote for Sen. Hillary Clinton at the convention, and change it to Sen. Barack Obama.
This is far less likely for the Republican Party where the traditions are more exacting and there are far fewer unpledged delegates who are given a free hand.
A candidate needs 2,025 delegates out of a total of 4,050 to secure the Democratic nomination. That being said, it is obvious that these 800 superdelegates can make or break the outcome of the convention.
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