A Complete List of US Electoral Votes by State

(Last Updated On: May 5, 2021)

Electoral College Overview

You don’t have to be accepted to the University of Complicated Voting Systems to be a part of the Electoral College. There are no sororities to rush in the spring, nor any awkward autumn back-to-school meet and greets. The Electoral College is, according to the National Archives, “a process, not a place.”

As established in the US Constitution, the Electoral College provides a middle ground between an election consisting of a vote of Congress and one consisting of a popular vote of US citizens. “Electors” in the Electoral College cast votes for presidential candidates based on the tally of citizens’ votes. Though never specifically named Electoral College in the document, Article ll of the Constitution as laid out by the framers details “electors.” Electors are again mentioned in the 12th Amendment, which addresses the electoral process. 

In total, there are 538 electors. To win the presidency, a candidate must receive at least 270 electoral votes, ensuring that they’ve garnered enough votes to avoid a tie. Each state is allotted a number of electors that corresponds, one to one, to the number of legislators within that state. These allotments, of both legislators and electors, are based on the most recent census counts. The 2012, 2016, and 2020 elections used the 2010 census. The next election, in 2024, will reference the 2020 census. 

In the great state of Washington, there are two electors for the state’s two senators, and ten electors that correspond to the ten congressional representatives—twelve electors total. Let’s look at how that distribution of electors works out for each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

List of US Electoral Votes by State

*  Most states assign all of their electors to the candidate who garners the most votes overall, within that state, in the popular vote. Maine and Nebraska are the only two states that don’t follow the winner-take-all system. These states instead assign electors according to the candidate who wins each congressional district. Therefore, it is possible—though rare—that these states could have a split vote. Both Maine and Nebraska have only had that outcome one time each: Nebraska in 2008 and Maine in 2016.

The Electoral College Process

The process of the Electoral College consists of three elements:

1. Selecting of electors
2. Meeting of the electors to cast their votes
3. Counting of electoral votes by Congress

Because this process is set down in the Constitution, it would take a constitutional amendment to change it. This would require a two-thirds vote of Congress and ratification by at least three fourths of the states. Over the years, amendments have been proposed to reform the way we elect our president, but none of these have been passed by Congress and sent to states for ratification. One of the issues cited by proponents of abolishing the Electoral College is the potential for a presidential candidate to lose the popular vote, but win the presidency. This is how we ended up with Presidents John Quincy Adams, Rutherford B. Hayes, Benjamin Harrison, George W. Bush, and, of course, Donald Trump.

Whether you’re for or against the Electoral College, it’s here to stay, at least for now. As important as the presidential election is, voting for state and local legislators you support will help ensure that issues you care about get addressed. Make sure you get counted in the next census, and make sure you vote!

 

---

Comments

comments