The US Electoral College...

is not actually a college or any other facility of higher education.

It is a system originally designed under the US Constitution, Article II and under the Constitutional Amendments 12 and 14. You can visit this historical link at:

United States Constitution, Article II;

12th Amendment and 14th Amendment

The Number of Electors of each of the individual US States are listed below, following a graphic representing the confusion in the 1796 Presidential Election.

The Electoral College in 1796 could not distingish between US Presidential and US Vice Presidential Candidates. There was only one list of men all running for all the offices.

Formerly, the US President was the man that received the highest number of Electoral Votes. The VIce President was the man that received the second highest number of electoral Votes.

The 12th Amendment to the US Constitution changed the electral proces and in the 20th Century, it became possible after additional Amendments for women and blacks also to hold these offices.

Under the graphics presented of the 1796 Presidential Election, a list of US States and the number of electoral Vostes each one holds is given.

Alabama 9

Alaska 3

Arizona 10

Arkansas 6

California 55

Colorado 9

Connecticut 7

Delaware 3

District of Columbia 3

Florida 27

Georgia 15

Hawaii 4

Idaho 4

Illinois 21

Indiana 11

Iowa 7

Kansas 6

Kentucky 8

Louisiana 9

Maine 4

Maryland 10

Massachusetts 12

Michigan 17

Minnesota 10

Mississippi 6

Missouri 11

As such a system, the US Electoral College is administered by NARA, which is the National Archives and Records Administration. The system was looked on an early national compromise between having a popular democratic vote (one among the nation's citizens) and having Congress select the US President (POTUS). It is confusing to many people, and school children sometimes struggle with the concept. It is similar in certain aspects to statistical weighted averages and standardized measures, but that is even more confusing to a greater number of people.

Simply put, the people of the United States do not vote for the President.

The people vote for the Electors, who are limited in number to each state by legislation. The State with the greatest number of Electors is California with 55 and that with the fewest Electors is actually a few States and DC with only 3.

The Electors, in turn, vote for the President and their vote is not tabulated completely until the December after the November election year. The votes of the Electors are assumed to reflect the wishes of the US population, but it is possible that they do not. There is no Federal US Law to require Electors to vote the way the majority of people voted for President in their state. However, some States have laws that do require Electors to vote just as the majority of people did in the Presidential election. Twenty-six states have these requirements, but in 24 other States, the electors may vote any way that they want.

The people are permitted to vote for the Electors during a Statewide general election, but they are not allowed to determine electoral candidates themselves. The people must vote on the Electors that the political parties have chosen. The Democrats and Republicans choose these candidates for Electors at their local State Conventions or within each party's central committee. So, there are Republican electors and Democratic Electors.

In the state general election, the names of the Electors may not even be shown on the ballot.

A voter in some states may simply be asked to choose their Presidential pick. They may never know who the Electors are! However, they can find out by requesting to see the State Governor's Certificate of Ascertainment that must list the names of the Electors.

Following the State general election, each Governor is required to make up 7 originals of a Certificate of Ascertainment for the Electors - winners and losers. These certificates look different from state to state and there is no standard form. Each original contains a list of the Electors and the number of votes they won. It is also required to have a list of losers and the number of votes they won as well.

If you want to find out who the Electors of your state are after your state's next general election, contact:

The Archivist of the United States

National Archives and Records Administration

c/o Office of the Federal Register (NF)

8601 Adelphi Road

College Park, MD 20740-6001

On December 15, 2008 all Electors must meet in their own States. Federal law does not allow any alternate dates. These meetings are usually held in the individual State capitals and Electors vote for President and Vice President. If any Electors don't show up without notice, those votes are lost. Any vacancies must be filled by the States themselves at least six days BEFORE the meetings, or this time on December 9, 2008. This means that emergency vacancies occurring on December 15, 2008 can't be filled. The votes won't be counted in Congress until January 9, 2009. It is possible that the majority of the population will choose one Presidential Candidate, and the results of the Electoral Vote - the actual winner -- will be the other candidate, but the chance is small.

Electors are often chosen for their past performance and service to a particular political party, so they are not unbiased. In fact, many of them are State Elected Officials SEOs), Local elected Officials (LEOs), leaders of Community Based Organizations (CBOs), party big-wigs, or folks with friendship/family bonds or political affiliations with Presidential candidates.

I would like to see America develop a strong third party, because I see too much money tied up in political campaigning and candidacies. This is the reason that some minds believe that America is not run "...of the people, by the people, for the people," as Abraham Lincoln stated it should be, but by and for corporations, lobbyists, special interest groups. Indeed, many believe that the presidency is bought. Many would like to see effective election reform to endure that elections are not biased.