777UPDATED: NOV 4, 2020
ORIGINAL: DEC 17, 2012
8 Surprising Facts About the Electoral College
Electing a U.S. president isn't as simple as one person, one vote.
CHRISTOPHER KLEIN
1. On five occasions, the winner of the popular vote did not capture the
presidency.
In the multi-candidate race of 1824, Andrew Jackson received the most popular votes, but with no
man winning a majority of electoral votes, the House of Representatives chose John Quincy Adams to
be president. In 1876 Samuel Tilden earned a majority of popular votes, but Rutherford B. Hayes won
by a single electoral vote. Twelve years later, Benjamin Harrison defeated incumbent Grover
Cleveland handily in the Electoral College although garnering fewer popular votes. In 2000, George
W. Bush captured more electoral votes while earning 500,000 fewer popular votes than Al Gore. In
2016, Donald Trump won the electoral vote despite receiving nearly three million fewer votes than
his opponent, Hillary Clinton.
READ MORE: 5 Presidents Who Won the Election But Lost the Popular Vote
2. Two states do not have winner-take-all systems.
Nebraska and Maine are the only states that do not automatically award all of their electors to the
winner of the state popular vote. Three of Nebraska’s five electoral votes are awarded to the winner
of the popular vote in each of its three congressional districts, with the other two given to the
statewide winner of the popular vote. Maine has a similar proportional distribution, with two votes
awarded to the statewide winner and its other two votes given to the winners in each of its two
congressional districts.
READ MORE: What Is the Electoral College and Why Was It Created?
3. On rare occasions, electors do not vote as pledged.
The Constitution and federal law do not require electors to abide by the results of the popular vote in
their states, so occasionally “faithless electors” go rogue and cast ballots for candidates other than the
one to whom they are pledged. A slight majority of states require electors to cast their votes as
pledged, although no “faithless elector” has ever been prosecuted.
READ MORE: How Are Electoral College Electors Chosen?
4. More Constitutional amendments have been proposed to reform or
eliminate the Electoral College than on any other subject.
There have been over 700 proposals introduced in Congress to reform or eliminate the Electoral
College. In 1969, an amendment that passed overwhelmingly in the House (338 to 70) and had the
endorsement of President Richard Nixon was filibustered and killed in the Senate. As an end-around
to a Constitutional amendment, the National Popular Vote interstate compact is working to have
states pledge to award their electors to the winner of the national popular vote. As of December 2012,
the bill had been enacted by eight states and the District of Columbia, which together possess a total
of 132 electoral votes. The measure would not be enacted until states possessing 270 votes approve it.
READ MORE: How the Electoral College Was Nearly Abolished in 1970
5. A similar electoral college was previously used by the Holy Roman
Empire.
From the Middle Ages until 1792, leaders of the Holy Roman Empire were elected by a college of
prince-electors from various German states.
6. Electors are prohibited from meeting in one central location.
To minimize the chances of corruption, bribery and backroom deals, electors are prohibited from
gathering in one central location to cast their ballots. Thus, electors meet in individual state capitals to
vote.
7. Members of Congress and federal employees are precluded from serving
as electors.
The manner of choosing electors is left to the states, although the Constitution stipulates that “no
Senator or Representative, or Person holding an Office of Trust or Profit under the United States,
shall be appointed an Elector.”
8. The words 'Electoral College' do not appear in the Constitution.
Article II of the Constitution and the 12th Amendment solely refer to “electors.” The phrase
“Electoral College” did not appear in federal law until 1845.