How can a candidate win the popular vote but lose the election quizlet?

A candidate can win a popular vote but not win the presidency. The second flaw is that the Constitution does not require the electors to vote for the candidate who wins the popular vote. college, the election would have to be decided in the House of Representatives.

How is it possible for the winner of the popular vote to fail to win the presidency quizlet?

electors may break their pledges to vote for candidates if there is no majority, the house decides. … The winner of the popular vote is not guaranteed the presidency – this has happened 4 times in our history, this is a result of winner -takes-all feature and the way electoral votes are distributed among the states.

How does the electoral vote determine the winner of the election?

The number of electors each state gets is equal to its total number of Senators and Representatives in Congress. A total of 538 electors form the Electoral College. Each elector casts one vote following the general election. The candidate who gets 270 votes or more wins.

Does the winner of the popular vote get all the electoral votes?

In 48 of the 50 states, state laws mandate the winner of the plurality of its statewide popular vote shall receive all of that state’s electors; in Maine and Nebraska, two electors are assigned in this manner, while the remaining electors are allocated based on the plurality of votes in each of their congressional …

What if no one gets 270?

If no candidate receives a majority of electoral votes, the Presidential election leaves the Electoral College process and moves to Congress. The House of Representatives elects the President from the 3 Presidential candidates who received the most electoral votes.

What are the 3 major defects with the Electoral College?

Three criticisms of the College are made: It is “undemocratic;” It permits the election of a candidate who does not win the most votes; and. Its winner-takes-all approach cancels the votes of the losing candidates in each state.

Can a presidential candidate win the popular vote but lose the election?

There have been other attempts to change the system, particularly after cases in which a candidate wins the popular vote, but loses in the Electoral College. Five times a candidate has won the popular vote and lost the election. Andrew Jackson in 1824 (to John Quincy Adams); Samuel Tilden in 1876 (to Rutherford B.

How does popular vote affect electoral vote?

When citizens cast their ballots for president in the popular vote, they elect a slate of electors. Electors then cast the votes that decide who becomes president of the United States. Usually, electoral votes align with the popular vote in an election.

Why do we use Electoral College and not popular vote?

The Electoral College

As prescribed in the U.S. Constitution, American presidents are elected not directly by the people, but by the people’s electors. The Electoral College was created by the framers of the U.S. Constitution as an alternative to electing the president by popular vote or by Congress.

What happens if a candidate wins the popular vote but not electoral?

There have been four elections in which the person elected president won the electoral vote, but lost the popular vote (1876, 1888, 2000, and 2016). … If no candidate receives a majority of electoral votes, the House of Representatives elects the President from the three candidates who received the most electoral votes.

What is the purpose of the Electoral College?

The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of electing the president and vice president.

What is the Electoral College in simple terms?

The United States Electoral College is a name used to describe the official 538 Presidential electors who come together every four years during the presidential election to give their official votes for President and Vice President of the United States. … The Constitution leaves states to decide how electors will vote.