<P> The Electoral College and its procedure is established in the U.S. Constitution by Article II , Section 1 , Clauses 2 and 4 ; and the Twelfth Amendment ( which replaced Clause 3 after its ratification in 1804 ) . Under Clause 2 , each of the states casts as many electoral votes as the total number of its Senators and Representatives in Congress , while , per the Twenty - third Amendment ratified in 1961 , Washington , D.C. casts the same number of electoral votes as the least - represented state , which is three . Also under Clause 2 , the manner for choosing electors is determined by each state legislature , not directly by the federal government . Many state legislatures previously selected their electors directly , but over time all of them switched to using the popular vote to help determine electors , which persists today . Once chosen , electors generally cast their electoral votes for the candidate who won the plurality in their state , but at least 21 states do not have provisions that specifically address this behavior ; those who vote in opposition to the plurality are known as `` faithless '' or `` unpledged electors '' . In modern times , faithless and unpledged electors have not affected the ultimate outcome of an election , so the results can generally be determined based on the state - by - state popular vote . </P>
<P> The Electoral College and its procedure is established in the U.S. Constitution by Article II , Section 1 , Clauses 2 and 4 ; and the Twelfth Amendment ( which replaced Clause 3 after its ratification in 1804 ) . Under Clause 2 , each of the states casts as many electoral votes as the total number of its Senators and Representatives in Congress , while , per the Twenty - third Amendment ratified in 1961 , Washington , D.C. casts the same number of electoral votes as the least - represented state , which is three . Also under Clause 2 , the manner for choosing electors is determined by each state legislature , not directly by the federal government . Many state legislatures previously selected their electors directly , but over time all of them switched to using the popular vote to help determine electors , which persists today . Once chosen , electors generally cast their electoral votes for the candidate who won the plurality in their state , but at least 21 states do not have provisions that specifically address this behavior ; those who vote in opposition to the plurality are known as `` faithless '' or `` unpledged electors '' . In modern times , faithless and unpledged electors have not affected the ultimate outcome of an election , so the results can generally be determined based on the state - by - state popular vote . </P>
who elects the president in the united states
who elects the president in the united states
Electoral College
Electoral College