Unlike elections for other federal candidates and statewide offices, the presidential contest is not solely based on the popular vote. Instead, under a system known as the Electoral College, the winning candidate in each state, as well as Washington, D.C., receives that state’s electoral votes, which are largely based on population.
A candidate needs to win a majority of the country’s 538 electoral votes, or 270, which is possible even when losing the overall national vote, as Trump did when he won the White House in 2016.
In the event of a 269-269 tie, the U.S. House of Representatives chooses the winner, with each state’s delegation getting a single vote — a scenario that analysts say would likely favor former President Trump.
If every state aside from the battlegrounds votes as expected, that would give Vice President Harris 226 electoral votes and Trump 219, with the remaining 93 up for grabs.
Joseph Ax/Reuters
