How is the total number of electoral votes in each state determined?

Answer 1

Each state is alloted electoral votes based on the number of seats each state has in the House of Representatives and Senate. House seats are allocated by the census held every 10 years.

On January 6 after a presidential election, a special joint session of Congress, lead by the incumbent Vice President, convenes to count the 1076 official votes (538 for president and 538 for vice president) and to announce the winners, if any.

Answer 2

The entire Electoral College does not meet together in one place. Electors meet in their respective state capitals (electors for the District of Columbia meet within the District) on the Monday after the second Wednesday in December, at which time they cast their electoral votes on separate ballots for president and vice-president. Each state then forwards the election results to the President of the U.S. Senate, the Archivist of the United States, the state's Secretary of State, and the chief judge of the United States district court where those electors met. A joint session of Congress takes place on January 6 in the calendar year immediately following the meetings of the presidential electors. Senate pages bring in the boxes containing each state's certified vote and place them on tables in front of the Senators and Representatives. Each house appoints two tellers to count the vote (normally one member of each political party). Relevant portions of the Certificate of Vote are read for each state, in alphabetical order. The electoral votes are officially tabulated at the joint session of Congress and the winner of the election is officially declared. The sitting vice-president is expected to preside at the joint session.

Answer 3

Within each state and the District of Columbia, the electors who were appointed based on the results of the November election meet within the state on the Monday that falls after December 12 and before December 20 to record their votes on official "Certificates of Vote". The elector's Certificates of Vote along with their credentials identifying them as duly appointed electors, known as "Certificates of Ascertainment" are packaged and sent ASAP to the President of the Senate and to the National Archivist. Then on January 6, a joint session of Congress assembles to count all of the votes.

Answer 4

It is determined by population. Every 10 years a census is taken and from that the number of house representatives can change by going up or down. The state legislatures then makes districts and draws boundaries for the districts. In some cases gerrymandering happens when the committee members drawing the boundaries makes sure the new district contains more people who are in one party or the other. Doing this skews the vote to one side making sure that the party with the most votes will win.