# Electors and write-ins
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electors-and-write-ins/628727
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [July 19, 2012, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electors-and-write-ins/628727 "2012-07-19T15:28:23Z")
**Posts on this page:** 5
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Hershele\_Ostropoler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hershele_Ostropoler)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electors-and-write-ins/628727/1 "2012-07-19T15:28:23Z")
Who would go to Springfield as electors if 7 million Illinoians wrote in Ed Zotti for president? Obama will have his slate of electors, Romney will have his, presumably Paul, Stein, etc., but the write-in vote is a bulwark of democracy, how does that work with the Electoral College?
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### Author:  [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electors-and-write-ins/628727/2 "2012-07-19T15:45:26Z")
[Thread from earlier in the week](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=658854) on the same topic. Illinois is one of the states whose laws fail to address the topic.
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### Author:  [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)
#### Post date: [July 20, 2012, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electors-and-write-ins/628727/3 "2012-07-20T08:36:19Z")
> [@Hershele\_Ostropoler](#):
>
> Who would go to Springfield as electors if 7 million Illinoians wrote in Ed Zotti for president? Obama will have his slate of electors, Romney will have his, **presumably Paul** , Stein, etc., but the write-in vote is a bulwark of democracy, how does that work with the Electoral College?
(Bold added.)
Interesting. Are you thinking that Paul will bolt and run as an independent? Wouldn’t THAT be exciting!
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### Author:  [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)
#### Post date: [July 20, 2012, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electors-and-write-ins/628727/4 "2012-07-20T13:00:30Z")
I’m not sure there is a reason why electors need to be designated beforehand. If Zotti got all those write-ins, that would simply entitled people to attend the electoral college who are committed to Zotti, but they could be assembled after the election.
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### Author:  [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)
#### Post date: [July 20, 2012, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electors-and-write-ins/628727/5 "2012-07-20T14:08:06Z")
> [@jtur88](#):
>
> I’m not sure there is a reason why electors need to be designated beforehand. If Zotti got all those write-ins, that would simply entitled people to attend the electoral college who are committed to Zotti, but they could be assembled after the election.
Because under our current system we are voting for the electors, not the candidate. While the practical implications are small, it’s like handing a blank check to someone with your vote.