What is the Electoral College?

Certificates of Vote are the documents that contain the elector's votes for president and vice president. While Federal law does not govern the general appearance of the Certificates, they must contain two distinct lists – one for President and one for Vice President.

The electors must execute six Certificates of Vote. Each of the six Certificates of Vote must be signed by all of the electors and a Certificate of Ascertainment must be attached to each of the Certificates of Vote.

The Certificates of Vote must list:
(The Certificates do not contain the names of persons who did not receive electoral votes.)

• all persons who received electoral votes for President and the number of electors who voted for each person.
• all persons who received votes for Vice President and the number of electors who voted for each person.

Finally, each of the six pairs of Certificates must be sealed and certified by the electors as containing the list of electoral votes of that State for President and Vice President. The Certificates are then sent to the designated Federal and State officials.

View the Certificates of Vote from the:

• 2008 Presidential Election
• 2004 Presidential Election
• 2000 Presidential Election

Read the Certificates of Vote Preparation and Distribution Instructions