US Government Name:
Chapter 8 Section 2 Electing the President
Standard A.3 A student who meets the content standard should understand how nations organize their governments;
Standard B.3 A student who meets the content standard should understand the United States Constitution, including separation of powers, the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government, majority rule,
and minority rights;
Vocabulary: Define each of the following:
Elector -
Electoral Vote -
USING COMPLETE SENTENCES answer the following:
1. Why didn't some of the founders like the idea of directly electing the president?
2. Why did the founder no like the idea of the Congress selecting the president?
3. How did the introduction of political parties change the way the president was chosen?
4. Look at the Graphic at the top of page 222. How many electoral votes are needed for someone to win the presidential election in a modern election?
5. Look at the Graphic at the top of page 222. Who where the FOUR presidents who won the presidency even though they did not win the popular vote?
6. Look at the Graphic at the top of page 222. How was the election of 1824 decided?
7. Look at the Graphic at the top of page 222. Why don't the percentages add up to 100% for the top two candidates in each of the four elections?
8. When does the winning candidate become president?
9. Which two states do not have a winner-take-all system for awarding electoral votes?
10. When a person votes for President, who are they REALLY voting for?
11. How do we determine how many electors each state gets?
12. What happens if no candidate gets a majority of the electoral college votes?
13. Give two examples of cases in which electors have voted for someone other than the candidate who won in their state.
14. How can third party candidates complicate the election for president?
15. Identify ONE proposal for changing the electoral college system.
16. Look at the chart labeled "Popular and Electoral Vote in Select Elections". Which state voted for Bush (Republican) in 2000 but then voted for Obama (Democrat) in 2008?
17. Who did Alaska Vote for in 2000 and in 2008?
18. Read "Issues to be Debate" on page 227. With which opinion do you tend to agree? EXPLAIN your reasoning.