Electionista's expert, Keli Goff, answers YOUR questions about the 2008 race to the White House!
On Election Day, how do all of
the votes from around the country get counted up? What if they're counted incorrectly? —Lindsay, 16, Huntington Beach,
Hey Lindsay! Good question! We all hear about the electoral college, but you're right
that we don't hear much about what happens after votes are cast and before they
announce the winner. The vote counting process involves three main steps that
Step 1: After the last voter at a polling place has voted (or cast his/her
ballot) then the ballot box, which holds all of the votes, is sealed.
Step 2: The ballot box is then sent to an official vote
counting location, usually a city hall or some other government-type location.
(To make sure there is no funny business the boxes are usually accompanied by a
law enforcement officer.)
Step 3: Official observers representing the candidates or political parties
running for office observe the actual vote-counting process to make sure it is
There are different ballots used in different voting locations. For
instance, some facilities have begun using computerized ballots, which can record votes on disks, or transmit results
directly to the counting facility. Others use paper ballots which are handwritten
ballots that can be counted individually by hand, while others use punch-card
ballots (ballots you punch a hole in) to vote your choice. They became famous (or
rather, "infamous") after the 2000 election because people had trouble telling
which holes were punched and which ones were not, which is why you may hear
your parents and older siblings sometimes joke about "Hanging Chads." Particularly when it comes to paper ballots, sometimes more
than one person will count to double check the results.
In some states if an election is really close they have laws that automatically
call for a recount, but in other instances if a race is close the losing candidate
or party will request a recount, which is what happened famously in the 2000
Our system isn't always perfect, but we certainly have a lot of people working
hard to try to get things right!
Do you have a question about the 2008 presidential election? Click here to submit yours to the Electionista experts!