Members of the Electoral College will meet today to conduct their constitutional duty: elect the next president and vice president of the United States of America. 

The vote this year, however, comes amid an ongoing pandemic. In New York, officials have concluded the vote must be conducted in person in order to satisfy wording in the state's constitution and stave off a potential legal challenge from President Donald Trump's allies.

Here are four things to know as the electors meet in Albany. 

Who are they?

Oh, only the most prominent Democrats in New York politics and labor. The electors include Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Attorney General Letitia James, Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, and the top legislative leaders in the Assembly and Senate.

Most prominent among them are former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the party's 2016 presidential nominee. The electors are rounded out by labor union officials and the chairman of the state Democratic Party.

Where and when are they meeting?

In recent years, the electors have convened in the state Senate chamber for the pro forma vote. In prior years, according to a photo tweeted by NBC News historian Michael Beschloss, may have met (or at least posed for a photo) in the Red Room, the governor's ceremonial office, in 1933.

But the pandemic has scrambled things this year. The state Senate chamber was not seen as conducive for the vote given social distancing requirements. Instead, the electors will vote in the larger state Assembly chamber. Cuomo last week indicated the vote will be relatively quick in order to limit peoples' contact with one another during the vote.

The vote is scheduled for noon today.

Why does this matter?

There's no doubt about the outcome of the vote. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will receive the majority of electoral votes today and be sworn in as new president and vice president next month. The vote today is part of the pageantry of our democracy and a symbol of the peaceful transition of power that's sustained our country for more than 200 years.

Four years ago, dispirited Democrats gathered in Albany to cast votes for Hillary Clinton. There was no doubt who won the majority of electoral votes nationwide that year: Republican Donald Trump.

Do people want the electoral college to change?

Yes, including many New Yorkers who feel the current system dillutes the state's influence in national politics. New York has not voted for a Republican presidential candidate since 1984, when Ronald Reagan was re-elected.

One proposal would move the country to a popular vote by pledging the state's electors to candidate who received the most aggregate votes. Another measure would put New York into the camp of states like Maine and Nebraska by allocating electoral votes by congressional district, potentially giving upstate New York more clout in a presidential campaign.