Everything You Ever Wanted to Understand About the Electoral College, But Were Too Hesitant to Ask

As you’ve likely been reminded many times, your vote in a presidential election doesn’t count in a nationwide popular vote. Instead, you're participating in selecting the Electoral College delegates for your state. There are many debates surrounding the use of this system compared to simply determining the winner through the national popular vote. However, for now, the Electoral College seems to be here to stay. Here are a few questions you’ve likely wondered about but were too unsure to ask.

Who are the members of the Electoral College?

Each state has its own method for selecting electors. Some states nominate electors at party conventions, while others use committees. In Pennsylvania, the campaigns choose their own electors. The main disqualifiers for becoming an elector include holding a federal office or having engaged in an insurrection against the U.S. government. Electors are typically loyal party members trusted to cast their votes in alignment with their state's popular vote.

When and where does the Electoral College cast its votes?

Although the name might suggest that all electors gather in one place to vote, the Electoral College does not meet as a single group. Instead, each set of electors convenes in a designated location in their respective states (or the District of Columbia), typically the capital, on the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December during an election year. After casting their ballots, the votes are counted in a joint session of Congress on January 6th.

What happens if no candidate secures 270 Electoral votes?

If no candidate achieves a majority (currently 270) of the Electoral College votes after the joint session, the House of Representatives convenes to elect the president. In this case, each state's delegation comes together to select a candidate from the top three contenders in the Electoral College vote. The state's representatives cast a single vote, and the process continues until one candidate gains a majority of the votes from the states. The House has chosen two presidents: Thomas Jefferson in the 1800 election (under different rules) and John Quincy Adams in the 1824 election.

Who selects the vice president if there is an Electoral College tie?

Since electors also cast ballots for vice president, a similar situation can arise for that office. In such cases, the Senate immediately convenes to elect a vice president, with each senator casting a vote between the top two vote-getters. The Senate continues voting until one candidate secures a majority of the votes. This type of contingent election has occurred only once: in 1836, Martin Van Buren's running mate, Richard M. Johnson, needed 148 votes to win the vice presidency, but Virginia's electors refused to vote for him. As a result, Johnson ended up with 147 votes, and the Senate had to conduct a contingent election, where Johnson triumphed over Whig candidate Francis Granger.

Can electors change their vote?

They can, but they become what are referred to as faithless electors. Technically, states require electors to pledge to vote in a certain way, and 33 states (plus D.C.) have laws mandating that electors vote for their designated candidate. However, with a few exceptions like Michigan and Minnesota, the votes of faithless electors still count in the final tally.

Have faithless electors been common throughout history?

Faithless electors have actually shown up fairly often in the history of U.S. elections. One notable case occurred in 1972, when Roger MacBride, the treasurer of the Virginia Republican Party, was supposed to vote for Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew. However, MacBride cast his ballot for the Libertarian Party ticket. This move made him unpopular with the state GOP, but he became a hero within the Libertarian movement. In fact, his decision inspired such enthusiasm that he received the party’s presidential nomination in the 1976 election.

Though most cases of faithless electors don’t benefit smaller party candidates as this one did, they’re not uncommon—and they aren’t a modern phenomenon either. For instance, in 1820, William Plumer was supposed to vote for James Monroe but instead cast his vote for John Quincy Adams. His reasoning has been questioned over time, with some believing he wanted George Washington to remain the only unanimously elected president. However, historian C.O. Paullin suggests Plumer told his son that he did it because he thought Monroe lacked vision and was neglecting his duties. Similarly, although Ronald Reagan won decisively in 1980 and 1984, he still received one electoral vote in 1976. Mike Padden, a faithless elector from Spokane, Washington, voted for Reagan instead of Gerald Ford, as originally pledged.

Does the winner of the popular vote in each state also receive all of the state's electoral votes?

Yes, in most states, the winner of the popular vote also receives all of that state’s electoral votes. However, Maine and Nebraska have a slightly different system. Since each congressional seat roughly corresponds to one electoral vote, these two states allow each congressional district to choose its own candidate. The two remaining electoral votes, corresponding to the state's two Senators, go to the candidate who wins the overall popular vote in the state. This system could theoretically split a state’s electoral votes between two candidates, though in practice, the districts typically vote in a unified way. While Maine and Nebraska adopted this system in 1972 and 1992, respectively, they’ve only split their votes once each: in 2008, Obama won Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District, and in 2016, Trump won Maine’s 2nd District.

What occurs if a president-elect passes away before taking office?

The national election happens on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, but the Electoral College doesn’t formally meet to cast their votes until December. If a candidate dies or is rendered unfit to serve between the election and the Electoral College meeting, it creates a complicated situation. States like Virginia legally bind electors to vote for the candidate on the general election ballot. However, some experts argue that the major political parties could nominate a new candidate. Justice Elena Kagan noted in a ruling about binding electors that, 'because the situation is not before us, nothing in this opinion should be taken to permit the States to bind electors to a deceased candidate.' Other states are more lenient and might allow electors to vote for the vice-presidential candidate or another candidate agreed upon by the party.

Fortunately, this situation has never arisen with a winning candidate. However, in 1872, Horace Greeley died just over three weeks after losing the election to Ulysses S. Grant. Despite Greeley’s death, the Electoral College met to cast its votes, and electors who had intended to vote for him distributed their 66 votes among other candidates. As a result, Thomas Andrews Hendricks, who did not campaign for the presidency since he was running for Governor of Indiana, finished second with 42 electoral votes. Three electors even voted for Greeley after his death, but those votes were ultimately rejected.

If the president-elect dies after Congress has counted the votes but before the inauguration, the Twentieth Amendment declares that the vice president-elect will become president. However, if a candidate dies between the Electoral College vote and the vote counting in Congress, the situation is more ambiguous because it is unclear at which moment the candidate officially becomes president-elect and the Twentieth Amendment takes effect.

John Fortier, director of governmental studies at the Bipartisan Policy Center, told the AP, 'That’s the worst, most confusing time,' while the National Archives stated, 'We don’t know what would happen if a candidate dies or becomes incapacitated between the meeting of electors and the counting of electoral votes in Congress.'

Thomas H. Neale of the Congressional Research Service [PDF] noted that while some people argue a candidate doesn’t become president-elect until the count before Congress, reports from the House that accompanied the Twentieth Amendment suggest that the December date is intended for this purpose, helping to avoid major Constitutional issues.

What happens if the president-elect falls seriously ill but doesn’t die?

The situation surrounding a president-elect who is seriously ill but alive is more ambiguous. Neale explains that it depends on the Twentieth Amendment's provision: 'if the president-elect shall have failed to qualify, then the vice president-elect shall act as president until a president shall have qualified.' Neale further explains that the Twentieth Amendment doesn’t specifically address situations like resignation, disability, or disqualification of the president or vice president-elect, adding:

“In the case of a president-elect, however, if the language of the amendment were interpreted to consider these circumstances a 'failure to qualify,' then the vice president-elect would assume the role of acting president 'until a president shall have qualified.' If this interpretation were followed, the vice president-elect might serve as acting president until the president-elect recovers, or if the president-elect resigns, does not recover, or dies from the disability, the vice president could serve as acting president for a full term.”

This story has been updated for 2020.