270 votes are needed to win a presidential election. The Electoral College consists of 538 citizens, each with 1 vote. 538 = 1 x the Representatives in the House, plus 1/2 x the number of Senators. If no candidate recieves 270 votes or more, the House of Representatives votes for the president. This system was defined in the 12th amendment of the Constitution back in 1804. It was all about the means of counting votes back then. Today, if a candidate gets the popular vote in 11 of the following 12 states(CA,NY,TX,FL,PA,IL,OH,MI,NJ,NC,GA,VA), he has won the election. Its the game, to campaign in only 12 states.