How Does the Electoral College Work?

— -- As most Americans learned in school and re-learned during the 2000 election, Americans do not directly elect their presidents and vice presidents. They actually elect "electors," who make up the Electoral College and cast the critical electoral votes for the nation's top two jobs.

The following is an Electoral College FAQ, courtesy of the Federal Elections Commission.

How are electors chosen?

The political parties (or independent candidates) in each state submit to the state's chief election official a list of individuals pledged to their candidate for president and equal in number to the state's electoral vote. Usually, the major political parties select these individuals either in their state party conventions or through appointment by their state party leaders, while third parties and independent candidates merely designate theirs.

Who cannot serve as an elector?

Members of Congress and employees of the federal government are prohibited from serving as electors in order to maintain the balance between the legislative and executive branches of the federal government.

How many electors does each state get?

Each state is allocated a number of electors equal to the number of its U.S. senators plus the number of its U.S. representatives.

How does a presidential ticket win electoral votes?

Whichever party slate wins the most popular votes in the state becomes that state's electors -- so that, in effect, whichever presidential ticket gets the most popular votes in a state wins all the electors of that state. (The two exceptions to this are Maine and Nebraska, where two electors are chosen by statewide popular vote and the remainder by the popular vote within each congressional district.) Colorado may change its system of allocation with Amendment 36 on the state's ballot this year.