Electoral College

It is a system for electing the president of the United States of America.

The Electoral College was established in the US Constitution as a compromise between electing the president by Congress and electing the president by popular vote.

In Washington:

1. Each political party on the ballot chooses 12 electors,
2. Voters cast their ballot for president in the November General Election,
3. Washington election offices count the votes for each candidate,
4. The winning candidate's electors convene after the election to cast electoral votes,
5. Congress counts the electoral votes and announces the results.

How does the Electoral College work?

A presidential candidate’s political party chooses a group of people known as electors, one for each electoral vote. When you vote for president and vice president, you are voting for the candidate’s electors.

The candidates for president and vice president who win our state’s popular vote receive all 12 of Washington’s electoral votes. The electors for the winning candidate meet in person after the November General Election to officially cast Washington’s electoral votes for that candidate. The U.S. House of Representatives counts the votes on January 6 of the following year.

Why does Washington have 12 electoral votes?

Washington gets one electoral vote for each member of Congress: 2 U.S. Senators and 10 members of the U.S. House of Representatives.