Bayless vs Murray <| sep |> The problem is that to some extent , electoral college actually represents two different concepts . The first is the idea of winning states , rather than lumping all the votes together . You win or lose a state , and get that states number of electoral college votes . The second is the idea of electing actual electors as more than just a formality . You vote for proxies to vote for the actual election . It ' s quite possible to support the first half of that without supporting the second half of that . Personally , I marked down a specific candidates name on my ballot , I don ' t know who the hell the electors are , I don ' t want whoever these electors even are hijacking elections in general . If we are going to vote for electors , then let ' s vote for actual electors . But that ' s not really what happens from a practical standpoint . But it ' s quite possible to support the idea of a EC system of counting votes by state , while still being against faithless electors , which is why it is against the law in many states .