What is the total number of electoral votes in the United States?

The total number of electoral votes in the United States is 538, which is the correct answer. This number is derived from the combination of the 435 Representatives in the House, 100 Senators in the Senate, and an additional 3 electoral votes allocated to the District of Columbia, as established by the 23rd Amendment to the Constitution. This framework ensures that every state has a proportionate influence in presidential elections, reflecting its population while recognizing the presence of the District of Columbia, which does not have voting representation in Congress.

The other options fall short of the correct total by significant margins, illustrating a lack of understanding of the structure of Congress and the electoral process as outlined in the U.S. Constitution.