How the electoral college works - The Washington Post

The United States uses a system called the electoral college to elect presidents. Under this method, the candidate with the most votes nationwide doesn’t necessarily win the election, which was the case in 2016 with Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump and in 2000 with George W. Bush and Al Gore. (lt also happened three times in the 19th century.) Each state is given a number of electors based on the size of its congressional delegation. The candidate who wins a majority of electors becomes president.....
https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2020/08/24/how-electoral-college-works/