Where has this sub been all my life <| sep |> It ' s never actually been tested , but the way the Constitution is written , the states pick electors however they like most award all of the state ' s electors to the candidate with the most votes within that state , a couple split them between candidates based on percentage of votes . The electors all vote . Most states have laws saying they have to vote the way the state did , but no one has ever been prosecuted for voting differently . So in theory they could vote however they like . The results of the electoral vote are presented to a joint session of Congress for certification . Members of Congress can object to a state ' s electoral votes , which is then put before a vote of Congress . If a majority of both the House and Senate agree , the state ' s electoral votes can be discarded . This has happened a few times in the 19 th century when there was evidence of fraud in the votes , and when some electors voted for a dead candidate . It never changed the outcome of the election though . If Congress does reject enough electoral votes , however , it could drop below the 270 votes needed to become President . If that happens , the House elects a President from the top three candidates , and the Senate elects a Vice President . If the House can ' t agree on a President by Inauguration Day , the person the Senate picked as Vice President will become the President . If neither the House or Senate pick anyone by the deadline , the Speaker of the House Paul Ryan becomes President . It is really , really , really , unlikely that this would happen though . It ' s in there more as a fail safe in case something happens between the election and inauguration rampant fraud is discovered , the elected candidate changes their mind , dies , or turns out to be a criminal , etc . After the election they ' d go through the impeachment process , this sort of prevents situations where someone takes office and is immediately impeached the next day .