First off think about the Presidential election as 51 individual elections. One for each state and Washington D.C.

 

To win a state the candidate must get the majority of the people's vote, that's called the popular vote.

 

In most states the winner of the popular vote takes all of the electoral votes.

 

To learn more about the voting process, we spent the day at a mock election at Indio high school

 

"We just want them to have an understanding of the whole experience," said Lisa Nava, Chair of the Social Studies Department at Indio High School. "They'll be able to connect it with the kids, their voting experience versus how they voted in history and then help them to feel more prepared when they vote in their first election."

 

Students like Wesley Barnes spent months preparing for the election, watching the Presidential debates and reading up on propositions.

 

"I didn't really know before, I was just going off what I saw in commercials, but actually hearing them speak really influenced my vote," said Indio High School Junior Wesley Barnes.

 

 Students cast their vote. They represent the popular vote. To win the real election candidates also need to win the electoral vote.

 

There are 538 total electoral votes. To win the presidency you must get at least 270 electoral votes.

 

The number of electoral votes in each state is based on population. Here in California we have the most at 55.

 

It's a lesson in government and history for students that's best learned by getting involved

 

"It gave us a good idea of what voting is actually like," said Indio High School Junior Yessenia Valencia."We actually got an election book so we could look at the propositions and the candidates and we had to watch the debates. It gave us a pretty good idea so next time when we do vote we know what to look for instead of voting for whoever looks the best."

 

Students say being able to learn the voting process first hand makes them more likely to go out and cast their ballot in the coming years.

 

As we've seen in past elections, just because you win the popular vote doesn't mean you'll become the president.  It is ultimately up to the electoral college.