The polls do not consistently reflect the thoughts of the average American. Getting a representative sample of the American public is an extremely daunting task, and it often does not fully align with demographic breakdowns.

Each state has a certain number of “electors”, people who ultimately vote the president in, which is based on how many Representatives and Senators that state has in Congress.  In total, there are 538 electors; the first candidate to reach 270 votes wins the election. In all of United States History, only five presidents won the Electoral College while losing the popular vote.