United States presidential election

High school (ages 12+)
People & Society

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/united-states-presidential-election

1. What is the total electoral votes?
2. What is the minimum electoral votes required for presidency?
3. What is the Electoral College and how does it work?
4. Why do some states give all their votes to one winner instead of splitting them?

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the total electoral votes?538
2. What is the minimum electoral votes required for presidency?270
3. What is the Electoral College and how does it work?The Electoral College is a group of electors who vote for the president. Citizens pick electors by voting for a candidate, and then electors meet to cast official votes. A candidate needs at least 270 of 538 votes to win.
4. Why do some states give all their votes to one winner instead of splitting them?Most states use a winner‑takes‑all rule, so the candidate who gets the most votes in that state gets all its electoral votes. This makes swing states very important.

Indirect Election: A system where voters choose representatives who then make the final decision.
Plurality: The largest number of votes received by a candidate, even if it is not more than half.
Faithless Elector: An elector who votes for a candidate different from the one they pledged to support.
Swing State: A state where the outcome of an election is uncertain and can change between parties.