What happens if no candidate wins a majority of the electoral votes?
If no candidate receives a majority of electoral votes the election is decided by the House of Representatives, with each state receiving one vote regardless of its size (i.e. the 53 representatives from California would collectively cast one vote on behalf of the entire state, as would the two representatives from Rhode Island). Whoever wins a majority of those votes becomes president. However, the House does not elect the vice president—that job goes to the Senate, opening up the possibility of having a president and vice president from different parties.
