Presumptive President-Elect Donald Trump has won the presidential election, even though Democratic candidate Secretary Hillary Clinton won the popular vote across the nation. Many people are asking what the Electoral College is and why we have it.

The founding fathers established it in the Constitution as a compromise between election of the President by a vote in Congress and election of the President by a popular vote of qualified citizens.

Each candidate running for President in your state has his or her own group of electors. The electors are generally chosen by the candidate’s political party, but state laws vary on how the electors are selected and what their responsibilities are.

A majority of 270 electoral votes is required to elect the President.

You can learn more about the Electoral College at the National Archives and Records Administration website. You can also find information on Wikipedia.