The elections in the United States are not held in the same way as in our country. In our country, the person who receives the most votes in the popular vote is elected. Elections are not held in this way in the United States.
When the US Constitution was being written in 1787, it was practically impossible to elect the president by popular vote at the national level due to the lack of communication in the vast country.
At that time, the framers of the Constitution invented the 'Electoral College' system for elections.
When the framers of the Constitution wrote the Constitution in 1787, they rejected both the ideas of Congress and the direct vote of the people (popular vote) for the president.
Their argument was that if the president was elected by the 'popular vote', the people would vote for their local candidate and as a result, the large states would establish dominance. Small states supported this 'Electoral College' system because, as a result, their role in the election of the president was also considered important.
The southern states favored this system because at that time, the number of slaves was large in these states. Slaves were counted in the census even though they did not have the right to vote.
The framers of the Constitution also did not want only lawmakers sitting in the capital, Washington, D.C., to elect the country's president.
The US election process:
The US presidential election will be held on November 5 of this year. There is no guarantee that the candidate who receives the most votes will win this election. This is because voters do not directly elect the president. They elect the US president through the 'Electoral College' system.
What is the Electoral College?
When US citizens vote in the November presidential election, most will vote for either Democrat Kamala Harris or Republican Donald Trump.
However, which of the two will win will not be directly determined by the votes cast by the voters. Instead of a national election, the winner and loser will be determined through the election of each state.
Winning one of the 50 states in the United States means that a candidate will receive all of that state's Electoral College votes.
The total number of Electoral College votes in the United States is 538. When the electoral votes of all the states except Maine and Nebraska are added together, the candidate who receives 270 or more votes will be elected president.
How the Electoral College Works:
Each state has a number of electoral votes, roughly proportional to the state's population.
California has the most, with 54, and states with very small populations, such as Wyoming, Alaska, and North Dakota (and Washington, D.C.), have at least 3 electoral votes.
Usually, states award their electoral votes to the candidate who wins the direct vote of the voters in that state.
Let's say a candidate in Texas receives 50.1 percent of the direct vote, which means that he or she will receive all 40 electoral votes in that state. Even if the margin of victory in a state is large, the winning candidate will still receive that many electoral votes.
Can someone be defeated despite winning a majority of the national vote?
Yes, it is possible. A candidate may receive fewer votes nationwide, but can still win several tough races and become president.
Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in 2016, despite receiving about 30 lakh fewer votes than Hillary Clinton.
George W. Bush defeated Al Gore in 2000 though his margin of victory in the popular vote was more than 500,000.
Before those two, only three other people have been elected president of the United States without winning the popular vote. But those were in the 19th century.
Since each state has a different number of votes, candidates plan their election campaigns in such a way that they prioritize the states where they have the most votes.
Why is the Electoral College called?
The word ‘College’ here refers to the people who are entitled to vote in a state.
On the other hand, the ‘Electoral College’ is a panel of officials, called ‘Electors’. In short, they are the electors.
It is formed every 4 years and they choose the President and Vice President of the United States.
The number of electors for each state is determined by the proportion of representation in Congress, which is determined by the sum of the number of senators in the state (two per state) and the number of representatives in the House of Representatives (which is proportional to the population).
According to the Electoral College system, states with a larger population also have a higher number of electoral votes. This system is used only for presidential elections. In all other US elections, victory or defeat is determined directly by the people's votes.
Are electors obligated to vote for the candidate who wins the state?
In some states, electors are legally free to vote for the candidate of their choice, regardless of who the general electorate has chosen.
However, in practice, electors vote for the candidate who receives the majority of the votes.
The state's choice of president is not the same as the state's choice of president.
f an elector votes in the 2016 election, he is called a 'faithless' or 'disloyal'.
Previously, 7 Electoral College votes were cast in this way in the 2016 election. However, it had no effect on the election results. In some states, 'faithless' electors can be fined or sued.
What happens if the electoral vote is 'tied'
If no one gets a clear majority in any case, the lower house of the US House of Representatives will vote to elect the president.
This has only happened once before, in 1824. Since the Electoral College votes were divided between 4 candidates, no one got a majority. However, with the dominance of the Republican and Democratic parties at present, such an event is unlikely to happen.
Why was the Electoral College system chosen?
Strengths of the Electoral College system:
The advantages of this system are - small states are important to candidates; Candidates do not need to travel the entire country, they only need to pay attention to important states; Recounts are easier because officials can easily identify problems in a state.
Weaknesses:
Candidates who win the popular vote can also lose the election; Some voters feel that their personal votes have no value; Too much power is in the hands of the so-called 'swing states'.
What are 'swing states':
Most states consistently vote for the same party in every election.
In the United States, these states, known as Republican strongholds, are called 'red states' and states dominated by Democrats are called 'blue states'.
As a result, candidates do not have to worry or pay much attention to these states. But there are a handful of states. States whose votes can go to either camp because of the candidates.
As a result, presidential candidates focus on certain 'swing states' where the vote will go in favor of a party, and it is not clear exactly which party will win. This is the 'battleground' or 'electoral battlefield' of the United States elections. Many call these 'purple states'.
These states become very important to the candidates, which are called battleground states or electoral battlefields. And the votes in these states ultimately become the key to victory or defeat. The main competition is in these states.
Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin became 'battleground states' in this way in 2016.
During every election, it has been seen that candidates spend a lot of time and money on election campaigns in states where the votes are high.
Who are the fake electors?
US voters were first introduced to the term ‘fake electors’ in 2020. That year, pro-Trump Republicans created their own ‘electors’ in seven states in an attempt to sway the election results.
In some cases, they created fake documents that looked like government documents, signed them, and appeared at state capitols on December 14. That day, voters across the country officially voted. Some of those who participated in this fraud have been charged. The investigation is still ongoing.
Some notable election history
2016: Republican candidate Donald Trump won 366 electoral votes, although he received about 30 lakh fewer votes than Democrat Hillary Clinton.
2000: Republican candidate George W. Bush won 271 electoral votes, although Democrat Al Gore received 540,000 more votes.
1888: Republican candidate Benjamin Harrison was elected president with 233 electoral votes, although Democrat candidate Grover Cleveland receives 1,456 more votes.
1876: Republican Rutherford B. Hayes is elected president with 185 electoral votes, but Democrat candidate Samuel J. Tilden receives 264,000 more votes.
1824: The Electoral College is split between four candidates, and the House elected John Quincy Adams as president, although Andrew Jackson receives more popular electoral votes.
-Based on BBC Bangla