Most Americans understand that every four years they go to the polls and vote for who should be president. What many do not know is that the election process has an extra step – an indirect way of electing the president called the Electoral College.

Each state selects a group of Electors who pledge to vote for the presidential candidate of their choice. These Electors, which total 538, then cast their votes after the general election. A candidate must receive 270 electoral votes to win.

During the campaign, candidates travel throughout the country and meet with party members. The parties then hold conventions to select their final presidential nominee. At this time they also choose a running mate for the vice president position.

A few weeks before election day, many polls indicated that Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump were neck and neck both nationally and in the swing states. However, Harris’ poor performance in a nationally televised debate caused her support to decline. She drew strong calls from her fellow Democrats, and even some Republicans, to drop out of the race.

The Electoral College system is designed so that careful and calm deliberation would lead to the selection of the best qualified candidate. If no candidate receives a majority of the electoral votes, the 12th Amendment to the Constitution requires the House of Representatives to decide who will become president. It selects from the top three contenders for the office, with each state casting one vote.