The electoral college is

a. designed to select the president.

b. a school attended by all members of congress.

c. established in the bill of rights.

d. the federal organization that oversees the operation of all elections held in the united states.

e. an expression of direct democracy.

Correct answer: a. designed to select the president.

As noted on the Electoral College page at the National Archives site, "the founding fathers established it in the Constitution as a compromise between election of the President by a vote in Congress and election of the President by a popular vote of qualified citizens."

There are many checks and balances in the design of US government. The Electoral College is a check against what the founders thought of as possible "tyranny of the majority," if a candidate with a great number of popular votes was seen by the selected electors as dangerous to the republic.