People do not directly elect the president and vice president. The number of a state's electors equals its number of United States Senators and Representatives. Every state, including the District of Columbia, is guaranteed at least three electoral votes. The presidential ticket winning the most popular votes in a state receives all of that state's electoral votes. Candidates coming in second or third do not receive any electoral votes of a state.
Electors are generally loyal party supporters.
A presidential ticket needs a majority of electoral votes to win the White House, currently 270 out of 538 electors. The historical documents displayed for each election provide a visual representation of the Electoral College process. Each state is responsible for carrying out these procedures. The documents are part of the official record of the New York State Electoral College. The New York State Archives in Albany maintains the state's Electoral College records.