(WSVN) - Tuesday is Election Day, but do you really know what you’re voting for when you voice your choice for the President?
It’s not the University of Miami, not the University of Florida, or Florida State University — it’s the Electoral College, and it’s not a college at all.
“The Electoral College itself is not a place. It’s not one thing, but it’s indeed a process,” said Dr. Robert Alexander, political science professor at Ohio Northern University.
It’s a process for picking presidents.
When filling a bubble on a ballot next to the name Donald Trump or Joe Biden, you’re actually voting for a group of republican or democratic electors.
This idea was put in place by our nation’s founders in 1787.
“Originally, the framers were thinking that perhaps people would not have enough knowledge. Communication was pretty sparse across the fledgling country, and so they said, ‘We’re going to allow state legislatures to select electors,'” said Alexander.
The number of electors each state gets is partially based on population.
California and Texas, for example, top the electoral count, followed by Florida and New York.
There are 538 electoral votes.
A presidential candidate needs 270 to win.
“You can win by just a few votes, but get 100% of those electoral college votes,” said Alexander. “In all states but Maine and Nebraska use that winner take all system.”
The system has led to presidential winners who did not get the majority of votes nationwide.
“Two of the last five presidential elections, we have those that have won the presidency without winning the popular vote,” said Alexander.
Who can forget the year 2000? George W. Bush won the presidency after winning the electoral college, even though Al Gore got the most popular votes.
In 2016, Donald Trump got the most electoral votes even though Hillary Clinton carried the popular vote by more than 2.8 million.
“The Electoral College itself has been one of the most controversial features in the constitution,” said Alexander. “There have been over 800 attempts to amend or abolish it over time. Sometimes Republicans have been really frustrated with it, at other times Democrats have.”
Either way, it’s the system we have in place.
Once each state’s votes are counted and certified, the college electors will meet on Dec. 14 to confirm our nation’s president.
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