How the Electoral College Works

Americans don’t elect their president directly. They vote for electors, and the 538 electors choose the president. It takes a majority — 270 — to win. These short explainers cover how the system works and what happens when it doesn’t go as planned.

The basics

• What Is the Electoral College? How 538 electors, not the national popular vote, choose the president, and why a candidate needs 270.
• How Are Electors Chosen? Who the electors are, how each state picks them and what they do when they meet in December.
• What Are Battleground States? What makes a swing state, and why a handful of them decide the election.
• Which States Split Their Electoral Votes? How Maine and Nebraska award electoral votes by congressional district.

When things go wrong

• What Are Faithless Electors? Electors who break their pledge, and the state laws that now bind most of them.
• Who Breaks an Electoral College Tie? At 269–269 the House chooses the president, with one vote per state delegation, and the Senate chooses the vice president.
• What Happens If a Candidate Dies? Who takes a nominee’s place, depending on whether it happens before Election Day, after it or after the electors vote.

Changing the system

• What Is the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact? The agreement among states to give their electors to the national popular vote winner once enough states join.

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