Definition of electoral college

The term "Electoral College" was coined during the Constitutional Convention in 1787, in response to concerns about the feasibility of direct popular voting for President. The Founding Fathers, particularly smaller-state representatives, feared that larger population states like Virginia and Massachusetts would dominate the election process under a popular vote system. To address these concerns, the Framers devised the Electoral College, athough it did not have an official name at the time. The system allocated a number of electors to each state, based on its population, with three additional electors given to the states with Senators. Each state was to select electors through its own processes, and winning the majority of the Electoral College, rather than the popular vote, would win the presidency. The name "Electoral College" was first used by Alexander Hamilton in Federalist Paper No. 68, published in 1788, where he defended the system as essential to balance the interests of smaller states and provide a more deliberate, reflective process for Presidential selection. The term stuck, and the Electoral College has remained part of the U.S. Presidential election process ever since.