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If a presidential candidate wins the popular vote in a given state does this mean that the electoral votes go to that candidate?
Wiki User
∙ 14y ago
Yes, however there are a few exceptions. The first is that 2 states, Maine and Nebraska chose their electors by congressional district. In these states it's possible that there could be a split vote. This just happened in the 2008 election - Barack Obama had the most votes in the Omaha (and area) district and Nebraska split its electoral vote with McCain getting 4 and Obama 1. The other exception are "faithless electors" ... those who do not cast their vote in the electoral college for the winner of the state, even though they are pledged to do so. There have not been many of these, and in some states, this may be an action that is subject to legal prosecution.
Wiki User
∙ 14y ago
Wiki User
∙ 15y agoWell not really, it depends. If you win the electoral votes, then you win presidency, so no you don't need to win the popular vote.
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How does a candidate receive electoral votes in any given state?
Most states appoint their electors on a winner-take-all basis, based on the statewide popular vote on Election Day. Maine and Nebraska are the only two current exceptions. Maine and Nebraska distribute their electoral votes proportionally, with two at-large electors representing the statewide winning presidential and vice-presidential candidates and one elector each representing the winners from each of their Congressional districts.
The group people chosen by the voters to elect the president and the vice president of the united states?
They are "electors" and as a group they are the "electoral college." Voters in Presidential elections are actually selecting the electors who represent a given party or candidate. Under the US Contitution, voters in each state select Presidential Electors who meet in their State Capitals and vote on the Presidential slates. Together, these Electors constitute the Electoral College, although the College never meets all together in one place. Although Electors are usually pledged to vote for one slate or another, there is no constitutional requirement that they do so. Originally they were expected to vote as they thought best for their states and the country.
In France voters go the polls to elect the president whereas in America voter go to the polls to elect the electoral college According to you what do the electors of the electoral college do?
First off, the general public do not elect the voters in the electoral college. Those chosen to cast a vote as an elector are appointed to this position. After the popular vote in each state has been tallied, the electors of that state, (however many there are) cast all of their state's electoral votes for the candidate their state chose. However, this system was designed to prevent the popular vote from making a bad choice for President. Because of this, the electors in the Electoral College have the ability to change their vote and give it to the other candidate. The number of votes given to each state is based on that state's population. That is why, for example, California has more than fifty electoral votes while some states have only two or three.
How many electoral votes were given to the state of Idaho?
According to the US Electoral College Web site, Idaho has four electoral votes. Read more, below.
Do the US people directly elect the President?
No, the people of the US do not directly elect the president. There is a group known as the Electoral College which actually elects the President and Vice President, after being selected as proxies in the popular election. It has occurred that Presidents were elected by the electoral college vote who did not receive a majority of the popular vote nationwide. Each political party in a state chooses a slate of electors. There are as many for a given state as a state has both US senators and US representatives in Congress. In 48 states, all of a state's electoral votes go to the single party that receives the most votes (President and Vice President). In Maine and Nebraska, some may go to the other candidates based on the vote. The electors from across the country meet in December and officially cast their votes for their candidates, and these votes are delivered to Congress to be tallied on the following January 6. If a Presidential candidate receives 270 of the 538 total electoral votes, he is declared elected, along with his Vice President, and sworn into office on January 20. If no candidate has enough votes, the House will elect the President and the Senate will elect the Vice President.
How does a presidential candidate win the presidential election?
People vote for a candidate. Each state has a given number of electoral votes. Win the state, get the votes from that state. Get more votes than your opponent, and you have been elected.
How many electoral votes did Mitt Romney receive in Louisiana in 2012?
None. Mitt Romney has not yet been confirmed as the Republican candidate for the presidential election. Electoral votes are given to those who are actually running for president.
How does a candidate receive electoral votes in any given state?
Most states appoint their electors on a winner-take-all basis, based on the statewide popular vote on Election Day. Maine and Nebraska are the only two current exceptions. Maine and Nebraska distribute their electoral votes proportionally, with two at-large electors representing the statewide winning presidential and vice-presidential candidates and one elector each representing the winners from each of their Congressional districts.
How is it possible for the electoral vote to produce a different result from the popular vote?
That happens because the electoral votes are not given in the same proportions as the popular votes received. Virtually every state uses the "winner-takes-all" method of appointing electors. If, for example, 48% of a state's popular votes are cast in favor of Candidate A, 47% support Candidate B, and 5% support Candidate C, Candidate A gets 100% of that state's electoral votes and Candidates B & C don't get any.The Electoral College casts the electoral votes. It is comprised of representatives of each state. While the popular vote is held to have an impact on the Electoral College's decisions on who to vote for, it is not illegal for the Electoral College to vote another way. In addition, not every state has the same amount of electoral votes. It is possible for more people total to vote for a president, but since they are so spread throughout the states, the Electoral Votes may end in another way.
Has texas' electoral votes always gone to the republican candidate?
Texas has given its votes to the Republican candidate in every U. S. Presidential Election back to and including 1980, but before 1980 Texas never gave its votes to the Republican candidate with the exceptions of Hoover in 1928, Eisenhower in 1952 and 1956 and Nixon in 1972.
What is the main complaint against the electoral college?
The electoral college's main failing is that it does not accurately represent the popular vote of the nation. Each state is given a certain amount of electoral votes, and then the electoral votes are used to determine the winner of US presidential elections. So if you voted for Candidate A, but Candidate B won the majority in your state, your whole state goes to Candidate B in the electoral college--effectively disempowering your vote.---Because most states award all of their electoral votes to the top vote-getter in that state, candidates do not need to win the national popular vote to win a majority of electoral votes. The result is that winning a few large population states (called swing states), even by a tiny margin, can guarantee election to the presidency. In 1876, 1888, and 2000, the winning candidate did not get the most popular votes nationwide.It is possible, but unlikely, that getting as little as 25% of the total popular vote (the most votes in 11 swing states) would be enough to elect a President under the electoral college.
What role does the popular vote play in a presidential election?
It has absolutely no impact at all. If something catastrophic happens before an election which could impact the general public's decision to vote well, it is the electoral colleges job to make sure that the correct vote is made. For instance, if the favored candidate's brother is charged with serial murder, and so people decide that they don't trust that candidate anymore, the popular vote will be against him, but the electoral college will vote for him because it is unfair to vote against the candidate just because his brother made a terrible mistake. The only impact people have in the election is that the popular vote is casted before the electoral vote, and so the electoral collage will usually vote the same way as the popular vote unless they feel that the popular vote was bias. The electoral college is not supposed to vote based on their opinion, but on the validity of the popular vote.
What is the national bonus plan?
the national bonus plan is a plan to reform the current election system so that 102 electoral votes are given to the candidate who wins the popular vote. This prevents presidents from being elected in contrast to the popular vote.
What does it mean if the electoral college is a winner-take-all system?
This phrase means "all or nothing". It refers to the practice of allotting all of a states electoral votes or delegates. in the case of primaries, to the one candidate who receives the most popular vote . All but two US states use this winner take all system in the presidential election.The alternative would be to split the votes proportionally in some way to reflect the popular vote. For example if a state uses winner take all and has 21. electoral votes, a candidate who wins the state by just one vote gets all 20 of the state's electoral votes. If the state did not use winner take all, it might give 11 votes to the winner and 10 votes to the other candidate.
Who did George Bush win against in his election?
George W. Bush won the 2000 presidential election defeating Albert Gore, Jr. In the 2000 presidential election George W. Bush received 271 (50.5%) electoral votes and Albert Gore, Jr. received 266 (49.5%) electoral votes. The popular vote totals were Gore 50,996,582 (50.3%) and Bush 50,456,062 (49.7%). Green Party candidate Ralph Nader won 2,882,955 popular votes. Nader did not receive any electoral votes. Republican Party candidate incumbent President George W. Bush won reelection in the 2004 presidential election defeating Democratic Party candidate John Kerry. In the 2004 presidential election George W. Bush received 286 electoral votes and John Kerry received 251 electoral votes. The popular vote totals were Bush 60,693,281 and Kerry 57,355,978.
What is the nickname given the Caucus System when used to nominate a presidential candidate?
National Convention It's "King Caucus".
What good is a vote of the people when the electoral college votes who they want in the white house despite what the popular vote is?
The winner of the electoral votes for any given state, is the candidate who wins the popluar vote for that state. For example, in the 2000 election, Al Gore beat George Bush by 500,000+ popular votes but Bush won the bigger states that have more electoral votes and took the presidency. The popular vote counts big time. Don't let anyone tell you different!
