Political Poll
There are currently no active polls at this time.
Click here to view other polls on our site and past poll results.
About the U.S. Electoral College: What is the Electoral College? Save Email Print

What is the Electoral College?
(Information courtesy of the NARA - Federal Register)

The Electoral College, administered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), is not a place, it is a process that began as part of the original design of the U.S. Constitution. The Electoral College was established by the founding fathers as a compromise between election of the president by Congress and election by popular vote. The people of the United States vote for the electors who then vote for the President. 

Learn about the Electors: Roles and Responsibilities:

The Office of the Federal Register coordinates the functions of the Electoral College on behalf of the Archivist of the United States, the States, the Congress, and the American People. The Office of the Federal Register operates as an intermediary between the governors and secretaries of state of the various States and the Congress. It also acts as a trusted agent of the Congress in the sense that it is responsible for reviewing the legal sufficiency of the certificates before the House and Senate accept them as evidence of official State action.


CLICK HERE to learn more about the Electoral College.
Campaign 2008 AP Video
2008 Election National Headlines
  • Franken on top in Minn. recount; Coleman to sue (AP)

    In a Sept. 23, 2008 file photo  Democratic candidate for the Minnesota Senate Al Franken makes remarks at the National Jewish Democratic Council in Washington.  The Minnesota state Canvassing Board is expected to certify the results of the re-count of the race between Franken and Republican incumbant Norm Coleman, Monday, Jan. 5, 2009. (AP Photo/Lawrence Jackson/file)AP - A Minnesota board on Monday certified results showing Democrat Al Franken winning the state's U.S. Senate recount over Republican Norm Coleman, whose lawyer promised a legal challenge that probably will keep the race in limbo for months.


  • Kaine says he'll limit time spent as party leader (AP)
    AP - Gov. Tim Kaine said Monday he will manage a Virginia budget crisis $3 billion and growing and head the Democratic National Committee in his spare time, largely as "an electronic gig."
  • Burris says he's senator — but Dems won't seat him (AP)

    Illinois U.S. Senate appointee Roland Burris arrives at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport in Linthicum, Md., Monday, Jan. 4, 2009. Burris will face a showdown on Capitol Hill about whether he'll succeed President-elect Barack Obama in Congress after being appointed last week by embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich. (AP Photo/Rob Carr)AP - Senate Democrats struggled to avert a showdown steeped in race and corruption Monday as a defiant Roland Burris declared, "I'm a United States senator" and flew to the capital to claim President-elect Barack Obama's old seat in Congress.