The Electoral College system in the United States plays a crucial role in presidential elections. In 2016, Donald Trump won the presidency despite Hillary Clinton receiving more popular votes. The system was introduced to balance the influence of states in selecting the next president. Each state has a certain number of electoral votes based on its representation in Congress.
However, critics argue that this mechanism gives disproportionate power to smaller states, while larger states have more electoral votes relative to their population. This can lead to candidates focusing campaigns on battleground states rather than smaller ones. The winner-takes-all-system also means that the candidate who secures a majority of popular votes can be awarded all of the state's electoral votes.