RealWorldGraduation_Question_47_Presidential_Elections <– PDF
Suppose, in a U. S. Presidential election, candidate A gets 48% of the popular vote, candidate B gets 46%, and the remaining 6% is divided among various other minor-party candidates as officially reported by the election authorities in all the states. However, candidate B is declared the winner of the election, and takes the oath of office. How could this happen? Between the election and inauguration, neither candidate dies, is convicted of a felony, is found to be ineligible, or refuses the office. Also, none of the 6% gained by other candidates represented a victory in any given state.
a) Candidate B engaged in large-scale election fraud, and was able to get many of candidate A’s votes to be rejected. Although 48% voted for candidate A, less than 46% were counted.
b) Candidate A was favored by the mainstream media, and they inflated the vote counts for their favorite, even though he was not as popular.
c) The other minor-party candidates gave their votes to candidate B, so he ended up with 52%, and is clearly the winner.
d) Since neither candidate got a 50% + 1 majority, a runoff was held in the U. S. House of Representatives, and candidate B was the winner.
e) A combination of a) and c).
(The answer is on p. 2 of the PDF.)
