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Road to the White House Mini-Lesson
Each week C-SPAN in the Classroom will provide mini-lessons for segments that aired on Road to the White House. You can watch Road to the White House every Sunday at 6:30pm ET.

TOPIC: THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE (George W. Bush in Florida)
Event Date: 1/8/04 | Air Date: 1/11/04 |

Watch video

links in the lesson |

Lesson Index

OVERVIEW
Electors are appointed by their political parties, in a manner prescribed by their state legislature, which empowers them to cast a vote for the president and vice president of the United States. The number of electors in each state is equal to each state's number of U.S. Senators (2) and members of the U.S. House of Representatives. The total number varies from state to state based on population and is adjusted every ten years, as necessary, based on census results. (Learn more about the Electoral College.)	Video Watch George W. Bush at a fundraiser from Florida. Watch entire Road to the White House program
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. How many electoral votes does Florida have? What determines the number of votes? How does this number compare to that of other states? 2. What was unique about Florida in the presidential election of 2000? (Learn more about the Election of 2000.) What will people be watching for in 2004? Why might George W. Bush have chosen to make Florida (specifically, Palm Beach County) one of his first stops along the campaign trail? Discuss what he means when he says, "I'm looking forward to working with you to carry Florida." 3. Who introduces the president? Who is in attendance at this campaign event? Who are the special guests? 4. How is George W. Bush approaching the campaign of 2004? What keywords or components of this event help you determine his level of confidence? 5. Ultimately, what does a candidate have to do to receive Florida's electoral votes? What points does George W. Bush make-or what does he say he's going to do-to help win over the voters? Consider both policy issues and personal qualities.
STUDENT ACTIVITY
Study C-SPAN's 2004 Electoral College map and determine which states' electoral votes went to the Republican candidate and which states' electoral votes went to the Democratic candidate in the election of 2000. (Alternatively, you can find the information on this chart.) Could a candidate win the presidency without winning the state of Florida? How important is the state in a candidate's overall electoral strategy? Do candidates target particular states, or do they target individual votes? In which states will George W. Bush spend most of his time campaigning? In which states are his potential opponent(s) campaigning? Why? Can you predict which party will carry which state(s)? APPLY YOUR KNOWLEDGE: Choose three states of interest to you. Can you predict which party will carry which state(s)? Research your predictions in local newspapers, through legislative agendas, demographic reports, voting trends, and businesses/industries of your state and others across the nation. Write up your predictions in a short memo to a candidate or party.

C-SPAN in the Classroom
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Curriculum Advisory Team

Road to the White House
C-SPAN's weekly look at the candidates, issues and events that shape the 2004 Presidential race.

2004 Vote
Information about presidential and congressional candidates running in the 2004 election.

3 Branches of Government
Learn about the legislative, judicial and executive branches of the U.S. government.

Vocabulary & Definitions
Check back for more terms as the campaign progresses.

Standard-Based Topics
Review standard-based topics with
C-SPAN in the Classroom's 2004 Vote web resources.

Campaigns & Elections Home
Link from here to all of our Vote 2004 Resources for the classroom.

Classroom Resources
Search our teaching resources by curriculum topic.

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