Group Member Names (Max 3):
American Government
Mr. Bekemeyer
The Electoral College
Instructions: Choose a recorder for the group. Use this answer document to respond to the
questions. Complete “The Electoral College” as a group and discuss the questions together before your
recorder responds. You only need to turn-in one document per group, however for examination
purposes, each group member may want an individual copy.
Warm-Up
Step 1
1.
What is wrong with this map of the United States?
2.
Why are only a few states visible on this map?
3.
What is the artist saying about voters in the visible states?
4.
What does this say about voters in the invisible states?
Electoral College Basics
Step 2
5.
What was the original purpose of the electoral college?
6.
How is the number of electoral votes for each state determined?
7.
The Constitution empowers the states to determine the method of choosing electors. How have
the methods changed over time?
8.
What is meant by the term popular vote?
The electoral vote?
9.
What is the difference between a plurality and a majority?
10.
How many electoral votes are there in a presidential election? How many do you have to win to
claim a majority?
11.
Why is the functioning of the electoral college at the state level called a winner-take-all
system?
Are there any exceptions?
12.
What happens if no candidate wins a majority of electoral votes? Has this happened before?
13.
How is this system similar to the presidential nomination system you just learned about?
Electoral College Controversies, Part I: Faithless Electors
Step 3
14.
How are electors typically chosen in each state?
15.
How do the parties attempt to ensure that electors will remain “faithful”?
16.
Approximately how many states require electors to “pledge” their votes to the candidate who
won the popular vote in that state?
Step 4
17.
Which is the most interesting instance of a “faithless elector”? Judging from the history of
faithless electors, does this seem like a major problem?
Electoral College Controversies, Part 2: The Popular vs. Electoral Vote
Step 5
18.
In a few sentences, summarize each of the following historical cases in which the electoral vote
and the popular votes did not match, including the outcome of the election: the election of 1824
and the election of 2000.
19.
How do you feel about a system of electing the president of the United States in which the
above is possible?
Step 6
20.
Summarize the findings presented in the article.
21.
How do you feel about a system of electing the president of the United States in which the
above is possible?
Electoral College Controversies, Part 3: Unequal Representation?
Step 7
22.
In which state (not D.C.) does a single vote in the presidential election (and the Senate) count
the most? The least?
23.
How much does your vote count in Georgia compared to the largest and the smallest states?
24.
Is this unfair? Why or why not?
25.
Some criticize the electoral college system for giving states with small populations more power
than they should have. How might they use this data in support of their argument?
Electoral College Controversies, Part 4: Red States, Blue States, Battleground
States
Step 8
26.
How many possible electoral votes are there?
27.
Name the three states with the greatest number of electoral votes.
28.
Name three states with the least number of electoral votes.
29.
What is the fewest number of states necessary to win an election (you might have to use a
calculator)?
Can a candidate win the election by winning only a small number of large states? Or a large
number of small states? Or only the states in one region of the country? Or does a candidate
have to have broad appeal across most of the country to win?
30.
Step 9
31.
Access this map of the 2012 electoral college results, as well as this historical map of electoral
college results (note the "Year" slide on the bottom lefthand side). Which regions tend to vote
Democratic in presidential elections since the 1990's? Which regions tend to vote Republican in
presidential elections since the 1990's?
32.
Have a look at this map of swing states in 2008. As you roll over swing states with your mouse,
be sure to look at the "Previous Elections" table in the bottom right-hand side of the page, as
well as the election results from 2008 on the left. You can also cross-reference using this map.
o Why are these states considered swing states?
o What are the biggest swing states?
o If you advised Mitt Romney in campaign strategy in 2012, how would you have used
this information when campaigning?
o If you were Barack Obama, how would you have used this information in 2012?
33.
Think for a moment about voter turnout. You have learned that the vast majority of states have
chosen a winner-take-all method of allocating electors for the winner of the plurality of the
popular vote. Imagine a Democratic voter in a "red" state like Texas or a Republican in a "blue"
state like Massachusetts. Why might these voters make a reasonable decision not to vote in a
presidential election in those states?
34.
Why might voter turnout be highest in battleground states?
35.
Why might the electoral college encourage the existence of a two-party system? In other words,
why are third parties almost always doomed to fail in the current electoral college system?
(Take a stab at this question. If you have an idea, write it down. If you simply have no idea,
that's no big deal.)
36.
This map from Politico reflects the status of swing states in the 2012 election.
o How many swing states did Obama win? How close was the popular vote in those
states?
o How many swing states did Romney win? How close was the popular vote in those
states?
o How many electoral college votes did all the swing states together have?
o How many electoral votes did the leaning or solid blue or red states have?
o At the top of the page, click on the "Predict Your Own Results" button and play around.
What is the minimum number of swing states that Romney would have had to win -instead of Obama -- in order to have defeated him?
Step 10
37.
What are these maps attempting to show?
38.
According to popular discourse, there are "red states" and "blue states." How do the last few
maps change that understanding of the American political landscape?
Conclusion
Now, go back to the political cartoon at the beginning of this activity. Have any of your answers
changed to the questions in Step 1? If so, how?