How is the number of Electoral College seats per state determined?
(1 point)
O by the number of party delegates assigned to the state
Oby the total number of House and Senate representatives
O by the traditional number assigned under the 12th Amendment
O by giving each state two seats
The correct answer is:
- By the total number of House and Senate representatives.
The number of Electoral College seats per state is determined by the total number of House and Senate representatives assigned to the state.
To calculate the number of Electoral College seats in a state, you need to understand the way congressional representation is determined. The total number of seats in the House of Representatives is fixed at 435, with each state being allocated a number of seats based on its population. This allocation is determined through a process called apportionment, where the total population of the United States is divided by 435 to determine the average population per seat.
After determining the average population per seat, each state's population is divided by this number to calculate the number of seats they are entitled to in the House of Representatives. However, every state is guaranteed at least one seat in the House, even if their population is less than the average population per seat.
Once the number of seats in the House is allocated to each state, the number of seats in the Senate is fixed at two senators per state. So, regardless of their population, every state has two senators.
To determine the number of Electoral College seats per state, you add together the number of House seats and Senate seats allocated to each state. For example, if a state has 10 seats in the House of Representatives, it will also have 2 seats in the Senate, making a total of 12 Electoral College seats for that state.
It is important to note that the number of Electoral College seats per state can change over time due to shifts in population patterns and changes in congressional representation through reapportionment after each census.