WEB Share of Electoral College and Popular Votes from Each Winning Candidate in All United States
WEB Splits Between the Electoral College and National Popular Vote 1824-2016
The following chart shows the five candidates who won the popular vote but lost the electoral college vote.
| Candidate | Year | Electoral Votes | Popular Votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Jackson | 1824 | 99 | 153,544 |
| Samuel J. Tilden | 1876 | 184 | 4,284,020 |
| Grover Cleveland | 1888 | 168 | 5,540,309 |
| Al Gore | 2000 | 266 | 50,456,002 |
| Hillary Clinton | 2016 | 232 | 65,853,514 |
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In elections from 1789 to 1804, each elector cast two votes for president. The candidate with the most votes became president, and the candidate with the second-most votes became vice president. This system was changed in 1804, when the Twelfth Amendment was ratified. Under the Twelfth Amendment, electors cast separate votes for president and vice president.
There have been five times in US history when the winner of the popular vote did not win the electoral college vote. These elections were in 1824, 1876, 1888, 2000, and 2016. In each of these elections, the candidate who won the popular vote lost the electoral college vote to the candidate who won the most electoral votes.
The Electoral College is a controversial system. Some people argue that it is undemocratic, because it allows a candidate to win the presidency even if they do not win the popular vote. Others argue that the Electoral College is necessary to protect the interests of small states. The Electoral College is likely to remain a part of the American political system for the foreseeable future.
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