Electoral College Easy

The Electoral College

by Mr. Bridwell

Electing a President

• What if I told you we don't directly elect the president?

• We use something called the Electoral College.

• Each state gets a certain number of electoral votes.

• How many do they get? Great question!

Multiple Choice

We vote for president using the ______________________

• House of Representatives

• Senate

• Electoral College

• Supreme Court

Electoral Votes

• Each state gets the same number of electoral votes as they have representation in Congress.

• So if Georgia has 14 representatives and 2 senators, they get 16 electoral votes.

• California is the largest and gets 54 electoral votes!

• DC is allowed to vote for president, even though they aren't a state.

Multiple Choice

If a state gets electoral votes for the number of Representatives and Senators, what is the lowest number a state can have?

• 2

• 3

• 5

• 7

How does a person become president?

• In the election every four years, people vote for president.

• If a person wins the most votes in a state, they get ALL the electoral votes from that state.

• Even if they win by one vote!

• Except for Maine & Nebraska
  

Multiple Choice

in 48 states how many electoral votes do you get if you win a state's popular vote?

• All

• Half

• None

The Magic Number

• To win the presidency, the magic number is 270!

• That is a majority of the 538 electoral votes total.

• It doesn't matter what combination of states you win, 270 is all you need.

Fill in the Blanks

To become president, you need to win

electoral votes.

What if no one gets 270 electoral votes?

• There is a small (1%<) that you can get a 269-269 tie or a third party get a few electoral votes.

• If that happens, the House of Representatives decides who the president is.

• They pick from the top three candidates.

Multiple Choice

Who decides who the winner is, if no one gets 270 electoral votes?

• House of Representatives

• Senate

• Supreme Court

• Last President

Popular Vote vs. Electoral College

• A person can actually get less votes for president overall, but still win the electoral college.

• This has happened FOUR times!

Multiple Choice

In 2016, Donald Trump ______ the popular vote, but ________ in the Electoral College

• Lost, Won

• Won, Lost

• Lost, Lost

• Won, Won