Quote:
Originally Posted by ProDigit
Anyways,I heard on the radio today, that the president elected yesterday, actually will be elected by... something else political in December, am I right?
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You're correct. We have not yet officially elected a president. The way our system works (for a variety of reasons, dating back to when the Constitution was ratified) is this:
We go to the polls on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. The candidate's names are on the ballot, but technically, when you vote for one you are voting for a group of "electors" who are committed to that candidate. As an example, when I voted, I was actually voting for a group of electors who are committed to Barack Obama. The electors committed to him got more votes in California than the electors committed to any other candidate, so his electors will be the ones who will represent California at the Electoral College meeting next month.
Each state is allotted a specific number of electors. The number is the same as the number of representatives that state has in the two houses of Congress. Every state has 2 Senators and at least one Representative. The rest of the Representatives are divided up by percentage of population. California has a larger population than any other state - we have 55 electorial votes. Alaska, on the other hand, has a very small population, and only has the minimum 3 electors.
When you hear references to "270" needed to win, that's the number of electorial votes it takes to be elected president. Obama will have something over 340, and once they cast their votes, then he will officially be elected President of the US.
Probably more information than you wanted, but you did ask. . .