Leonard Said:

How to determine electoral college votes in each state?

We Answered:

Each state gets one electoral vote for each representative and senator in the State.

Donna Said:

Is Obama actually winning the electoral college votes?

We Answered:

you got it, Until the polls close November 4, everything is just Guess work

Frances Said:

What if Obama loses the electoral college votes on December 15?

We Answered:

Probably not because he won by such a large margin. But, if the popular vote in any given state was really close, it would be possible that the vote count could change. Anything could happen, look at 2004 when the Supreme court chose the President.

Steve Said:

How does it work?.... Is the electoral college obligated to vote for the majority of the state's votes?

We Answered:

First, your scenario won't happen. Either Obama or Clinton will be the Democratic nominee, so when the general election comes, the vote will be between McCain and either Obama or Clinton, but not both.

Most states have winner takes all electors, so if a candidate wins that state, all the electoral votes go to him or her. The electors are not bound by the Constitution to vote as their states did, although they usually do. In 1968 one of Nixon's electors voted for George Wallace, who was running as an independent.

Rose Said:

How does the US pick a President if no one gets a majority of electoral college votes?

We Answered:

It's quite a lengthy process.

If no candidate wins the majority of electoral votes needed to win an election, the president is chosen by the House of Representatives from among the top three candidates. Each state gets one vote in the House of Representatives in terms of the selection of the president. The first candidate to win the votes of any 26 states is the new president. The 12th Amendment gives the House until the fourth day of March to select a president. In this scenario, Washington, DC would lose the voting power given to it by the 23rd Amendment, since it does not have the same Congressional representation that is given to the states. If a majority is not reached for President within the House by January 20 (the day the President and Vice President are sworn in), the elected Vice President serves as President until the House is able to make a decision. If the Vice President has not been elected either, the current Speaker of the House serves as acting President until the Congress is able to make a decision. If a President has been selected but no Vice President has been selected by January 20, the President then appoints the Vice President, pending approval by Congress.

If no candidate wins the majority of votes for the vice president, the vice president is chosen by the Senate. In the Senate, each of the 100 Senators gets one vote, with a simple majority -- 51 -- Senators required to select the vice-president. Unlike it does on the House, the 12th Amendment places no time limit on the Senate's selection of a vice president.

Each political party in both houses of Congress holds a caucus, or meeting, to determine these votes. For the most part, the majority party in each state determines the outcome for that state in either house. If a state has twenty-five Republicans and five Democrats in the House of Representatives, the Republican presidential candidate would get that states vote. A tie vote in a state negates the state. For example, if a state has 10 Republicans and 10 Democrats in the House of Representatives, each party would get a half of the point and therefore cancel each other out.

Ian Said:

Why vote if the final result is based on Electoral College votes?

We Answered:

Your vote counts toward who wins the popular election in your state. And, with the exception of I believe Maine and Nebraska, whoever wins the state popular election gets that state's electoral college votes. That's why your vote is important.

Also, the electoral college votes for each state are determined by the population of the states with respect to one another. So, for the person who complained that his state has 1/6 of California's electoral college votes, therefore his vote counts 1/6 as much of a Californian's vote, California has 6 times your state's population. So, your vote is just as important as mine.

The electoral college system was instituted to prevent politicians from just campaigning in highly-populated states with large urban areas. If a politician campaigned heavily in New York, for example, why would they campaign in some place like Montana, when a small percentage of the votes from New York would easily nullify those from Montana? Do you people in sparsely populated states really want the election to be dictated by people in the big cities?

Back in the day around when our country was founded, we didn't have the mass media like we do now. In fact, most people got their information from books, not even newspapers. And, the electoral college system forced candidates to tour the entire country campaigning, not just focus and cherry pick from the big cities.