Please speak to a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. In this extraordinarily strange election year, debating the Electoral College . After tracing the Electoral College's tangled origins at the Constitutional Convention, he explores the efforts from 1800 to 2020 to abolish or significantly reform it, showing why each has failed. Professor of History and Social Policy at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government. This article tries to answer the question of whether or not a popular vote would be better able to represent the will of the people more accurately and fairly. Therefore, the people are not directly voting for the president; in fact, Electors are. They view the Popular vote as a way to lessen the power of the people in rural areas, and make the focus of elections and political campaigns centered around the urban and city regions of each state. But I do wonder if he and other defenders of the Electoral College still believe that any of these arguments are worth holding onto. Let's abolish the Electoral College Created to protect the slave states, it is championed now by conservatives who fear the power of America's true majority. Safe States In 48 states, a presidential candidate can win 50.01% of the popular vote in a state, yet receive 100% of the electoral votes from that state. Candidates are compelled to focus on issues important in each state and choose where they want to make a difference. I am not alone in holding this perspective. (04.06 MC) The President of the United States cannot stand above the battle engaging in vague little sermons on brotherhood. Abolishing the electoral college is not only the wrong choice to make it will also have disadvantageous consequences for the USA. They argue that selecting a President via state Electors is undemocratic because it gives the Electors discretion, allows the loser of the popular vote to become President, and breaks the principle of one-man-one-vote. After three disputed Presidential elections in just 20 years, it's time for Congress to abolish the Electoral College. Since the beginning of the millennium we have had five presidential elections. Sign up below! By Jack Rakove, the William Robertson Coe Professor of History and American Studies and a professor of political science. Get Our Activist Investing Case Study! SEPTEMBER 15, 2020. This page of the essay has 1,601 words. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. A simple, popular election would produce a majoritarian winner, but the College allows the people of every state a direct say in the Executive branch. Almost all states rely on a "winner takes all" system in which every party in each state creates a slate of electors equal to the number of Electoral College votes the state has. The bipartisan bill is designed to close loopholes that could lead to another Jan. 6-type incident that disrupts the electoral count process. It removes a potential for disaster in presidential elections. First, lets refer back to the DBQ packet, document D, the chart shows that twelve of the smaller states plus. Yes! The Electoral College system was started to keep urban communities as well as cities from having the power in the Presidential election. It focuses on the concept of "voting power," the ability of an individual to influence the outcome of an election, within the political context of the controversial 2000 and 2004 elections and. Albert Einstein. Let's Abolish the Electoral College . In conclusion, the opposing view of the system insists the Electoral College is unfair and that every vote should count. If 60,000 votes went the other way in Ohio, George W. Bush would have won the national popular. Why should the Electoral College be abolished? })(); ValueWalk.com is a highly regarded, non-partisan site the website provides unique coverage on hedge funds, large asset managers, and value investing. Editor's Note: In 2016, we asked two professors to debate whether the Electoral College should cease to be the mechanism used for selecting the U.S. president.Here are the yea and the nay. There would be numerous benefits to abolishing the Electoral College. Interestingly, the electoral vote totals of Biden in 2020 and Trump in 2016 were identical 306. But Madison used an already accepted formula of state representation. jo.id = 'FJVoiceFeed'; 6. Abraham Lincoln received only 40% of the popular vote in 1860but 59% of the Electoral College. Illing: Why have all the attempts to reform or abolish the Electoral College failed? For the people who do not really know or understand the Electoral College, it is a body of people who ultimately decide who wins the presidential election. The College delivers a Chief Executive vetted not just by the people of every state but also by their state governments. Although this is very unlikely to happen, the fact that a candidate could win the elections with only 21.8 percent of the popular vote clearly shows that the majority of the people are not always represented in the Electoral College. Those who wish to abolish the system have laid out plans to replace the system with a more Popular vote oriented system which counts each individual vote directly (Neale 2004). Clinton, who clearly despised Trump, graciously conceded the election on Election Night. Even back then they knew that the popular . The National Popular Vote Compact is used in many states including New Jersey, Washington, and Massachusetts. They have long provided what may be, Which of these correctly compares the libertarian and conservative ideals of a model economy? Survey Methods. The Electoral College consists of electors in each state that cast their votes for the president based on how their constituents voted in the general election. Maine and Nebraska use an alternative method, the district system, which awards two electors to the popular vote winners statewide, and one to the popular vote winners in each congressional district. Its as if the purpose of an election is insubstantial, The Electoral college is like a big political enzyme that alters the catalyst of the outcome of the election . Pros And Cons Of Abolishing The Electoral College. Having a majority determine the winner of our presidential elections can moderate both parties considerably. Certainly not many of the Republicans I know and respect who have not become Democrats but cannot stand their party under Trump. Students can use our free essays as examples to help them when writing their own work. (2007). One reason the Electoral College should be abolished is that one of the candidates could win the popular vote and still end up losing the election. But do they really? But does anyone still believe it is a great idea for our politics? We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. So the advantages arent so fixed. Right now, small states have no voice because they, like big states and medium-size states across the country, are not battleground states. And the other is power after Trump. Gomez explains that the National Popular Vote Compact is supported by many politicians including Senator Joseph A. Griffo, Newt Gingrich, and Billy Hewes of Mississippi. Will closed his piece by saying what I called a catastrophe can generate moderate mandates for parties that seek a broad consensus., I will concede that the Electoral College might ensure the stability of the two party system. Compare and contrast Sample's and McConnell's views about the Electoral College. After more than a month of acrimonious counting and recounting, Bush emerged with a winning margin of 571 votes out of more than 5.4 million votes cast. Start by abolishing the Electoral College. EssaySauce.com has thousands of great essay examples for students to use as inspiration when writing their own essays. Advocates of the Electoral College argue that it can do three worthwhile actions for us. But these periodic crises could never have happened if we had elected our presidents by counting just the popular vote. Where the agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of fairness of the Electoral College system. The Electoral College does empower rural states. It distorts representation, arguably hinders democratic process and has a large impact on the outcome of a presidential election for better and for worse. Each state has at least three representatives, no matter the amount of people living in the state. [7] https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/17/books/review/let-the-people-pick-the-president-jesse-wegman.html, [8] https://www.vox.com/21142223/electoral-college-2020-election-jesse-wegman, [9] https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/01/the-electoral-college-is-racist-heres-how-to-kill-it-without-a-constitutional-amendment/, [10] https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-electoral-college-saved-the-election-11610133725, [12] Duvergers Law is a dead parrot. But we need bipartisan support in Congress, a constitutional amendment, and a majority of the states to agree. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. Much like the rest of the Constitution, the Electoral College was a compromise. This hour -- the history of the electoral system and what should replace it. The Founding Fathers knew that there needed to be a system like an electoral college in place to ensure the USA flourishes. For starters, direct elections by voters can create incentives for broad public participation. State electoral vote results are reported to Congress and other designated authorities; they are then counted and declared at a joint session of Congress held on January 6 of the year after the election; Congress may, however, change this date by joint resolution. Wegman: Its a great question, and I think it really gets to the heart of what the problem is here. Each state holds an election for the popular vote. Many were anxious even for an immediate choice by the people.[13], The plan was met with a great sense of relief and passed 8 to 3. Since the 18th century, the United States has used the Electoral College, made up of 538 individual electors, to elect its presidents instead of going by the popular vote. In fact, the problems it would cause became quite evident as early as the election of 1800, and were repeated in 1824 and 1876. Laura Thompson wrote, The case against the Electoral College is straightforward: Because states are allocated electors based on the size of their congressional delegations, those with smaller populations have an outsize influence on presidential elections. Last week, we released our initial House ratings for 2024. They did not trust that voters would have enough information to make a good choice. [5] And there is the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, an effort to get the states to agree to assign majority electoral votes to the winner of national popular election. The Electoral. Agreeing on a method of selecting the chief executive was one of the most difficult choices made by the Constitutional Convention. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. . Available from: [Accessed 01-03-23]. The Electoral College has failed to push parties to form broad coalitions. (Neale 2 CRS) Basically, Neale is saying the Electoral College provides additional leverage to states that have a smaller population. This helped our country pick a winner in many presidential elections where there were multiple candidates. "The main complaints against the Electoral College are that it can elect someone who didn't win the nationwide popular vote and that it causes candidates to campaign heavily in 'battleground states' while ignoring those they think they are certain to carry or not. A party system was instituted really to fulfill that old function of the Electoral College's, which is to narrow people down and get responsible people to be candidates for the presidency. The Electoral College is a antiquated voting system, slipped into the U.S. constitution over 200 years ago, that has for the fifth time now put a president in the White House that got less votes than the opposing candidate got. The Electoral College Is Racist [By Laura Thompson; March-April Issue 2021][9]. If it didnt exist, no one today would consider creating it. Yet this controversial system remains. If we make it through this election, we must make changes to the system that led here. 1956: Hubert Humphrey's (D-MN) S. J. Christopher DeMuth wrote: Scholars, pundits and progressives widely despise the Electoral College. Why is that a big deal? The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". . (download the rest of the essay above). In September 28, 2004, Thomas H. Neale wrote an article called The Electoral College: How It Works in Contemporary Presidential Elections for the Congressional Research Service. The district plan is the one that Maine and Nebraska use now. She also states that a Popular Vote would cause certain states and highly populated regions to have an unfair advantage in representation over the more rural areas in the presidential election. Neale provides his audience with the origin and purpose of the Electoral College system. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. var jo = document.createElement('script'); They are expected, but not constitutionally bound, to vote for the candidates they represent. There are two reasons they want to abolish the Electoral College: One, of course, is Trump. Should Electoral College Be Abolished. But Trumps ushering in of an ultraconservative minority-rule presidency, and the threat that he would do it again in 2024, has established Electoral College reform as a serious progressive issueespecially following the Capitol Hill insurrection., The Electoral College Saved the Election [By Christopher DeMuth; January 8, 2021][10]. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Presidential System Could be More Suitable for India, Why Ambedkar Didnt Like Indias Constitution. Younger voters also tended to support abolishing the Electoral College. What It Would (Really) Take to Abolish the Electoral College Ryan Bort March 19, 2019, 5:04 PM In 2016, Americans cast their ballots for Hillary Clinton by a margin of close to three million. When every ballot is counted in the same way, then the winner becomes easier to declare. Lewis is saying that the "playing field" is not equal when it comes to the vote. Both Democratic and Republican candidates focus on issues that are important to, say, coal miners in Pennsylvania or auto workers in Michigan, but those arent the only issues in the country. President Donald Trump won the election in 2016 through the. This not only brings federal attention to each state, but provides a fillip to Americas diversity. Therefore, they are not focusing on the needs of the people all over America which is going against what the founding fathers wanted. Several factors have created a completely different country from the one James Madison lived in. But Trump considers himself the winner this year. In presidential elections, the voters actually vote for a slate of Electors who have vowed to cast their ballots for their preferred President/Vice President ticket. Many rural communities feared that if the vote was counted through a popular vote system that they would equal representation as urban communities would have. This created situations where rivals could occupy those posts. It is beyond dispute that our system to elect presidents is no longer working. The funds (full-name Excess Cash Flow Value Funds), which invest in an event-driven equity and credit strategy, have produced a 12.6% annualised return over the past 26 years. 69.163.234.236 And state governments retained the power to appoint the electors. 1030L Answer Key 309 views Dec 3, 2020 4 Dislike Share Save Vaporly 247 subscribers This one I completed a while. But we need bipartisan support in Congress, a constitutional amendment, and a majority of the states to agree. Parliamentary Vs. Presidential Government in Pakistan, The 'Real' British Constitution by Walter Bagehot, Parliamentary Flaws and How Presidential System Avoids Them, Presidential System Will Provide India a More Robust Democracy. Although he has virtually no chance of succeeding, he could not care less that he was subverting our democratic form of government. [14] The Electoral College is the devil we know, wrote Yale constitutional scholar Akhil Reed Amar. Instead we . Get updates on the latest posts and more from ValueWalk straight to your inbox. We saw this happen in the 2016 election with Donald J. Trump losing the Popular vote but won the Electoral vote and thus the 2016 election. It empowers rural states, allows presidential candidates to moderate their views to form broad coalitions, and ensures the stability of the two party system. Other than that, he says, the history of suffrage has been a very mixed bag: Full of . The Electoral College consists of electors, and an absolute majority of votes is needed for a candidate to win the election. 0 . The January 6 committee could have called on Congress to begin the process of amending the Constitution to abolish the Electoral College, while at the same time recognizing the difficulties . Save it to your . If Democrats think they have a shot at turning out voters in rural states, they will tailor their policy agenda to appeal to such voters. The Founders created the Electoral College as a new method of direct election. This makes the candidates focus on swing states needs more than other states in order to win the election. The California Electoral College Initiative has been exposed for what it is: a Republican plan to steal the 2008 presidential election. Twitter launches Violent Speech Policy with zero tolerance for severe Watch live: White House monkeypox response team holds briefing, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Save it to your desktop, read it on your tablet, or print it out to read anywhere! It is these officials who choose the President and Vice President of the United States. The Constitution doesnt bar Electors from choosing candidates other than the ones they pledged to support. Mr. Bidens opponents soon abandoned their campaigns. The main complaints against the Electoral College are that it can elect someone who didnt win the nationwide popular vote and that it causes candidates to campaign heavily in battleground states while ignoring those they think they are certain to carry or not. The Electoral College has elected the president and vice president of the United States since the nation's, beginnings. This petition starter stood up and took action. The electoral college started with the constitution of the united states, it cited how many electors each state is able to have. Now the Electoral College benefits the Republican Party almost exclusively. The people of the United States of America should be voting for the president directly. Alex Keyssar is Matthew W. Sterling Jr. All of our essays are donated in exchange for a free plagiarism scan on one of our partner sites. jo.type = 'text/javascript'; Republicans won the 2004 election, but the Electoral College actually gave the Democrats a boost. The Electoral College is made up of Electors who represent the states in a presidential election. Legitimacy for any elected official is an important factor for governance of a State. (04.02 MC) Which of the following is a key belief of a supply-side approach to economic and fiscal policy? A national popular vote would have accentuated rather than moderated the zealous enthusiasms roiling the Democratic Party.. Should The Electoral College Be Abolished? The electoral "college" is an example. Illing: But the dynamics have changed, right? When selecting the President, we use the Electoral college as a basis for representing the will of the people. Get the entire 10-part series on our in-depth study on activist investing in PDF. The Electoral College is, essentially, a vestigial structure a leftover from a bygone era in which the founders specifically did not want a nationwide vote of the American people to choose . Steve Slavin - Nov 23, 2020, 2:52 pm. Yes. The United States, Presidential elections provide a level of legitimacy to each new administration by following the will of the people (Clayton 2007; Koza 2016). They were also working to balance the needs of small and large states, as well as slave and free states. Nearly all states follow the winner-take-all system, awarding all electoral votes to the presidential candidate who receives the most votes in that state. Mission: Providing a framework to improve your investing PROCESS, while collecting newsworthy information about trends in business, politics and tech areas. George Mason argued that giving the people this choice was like referring a trial of colors to a blind man., Speaking on behalf of the Brearly Committee, Gouverneur Morris said the chief reason for the Electoral College was the indispensible necessity of making the executive independent of the legislature. Nobody had appeared to be satisfied with an appointment by the legislature, he said. If 60,000 votes went the other way in Ohio, George W. Bush would have won the national popular vote by 3 million votes, but John Kerry wouldve been elected. The Republicans I know and respect who have not become Democrats but can not stand their under! A potential for disaster in presidential elections can moderate both parties considerably the question of fairness of the states. Dispute that our system to elect presidents is no longer working [ Laura... Used to store the user consent for the USA to win the.. 2 CRS ) Basically, Neale is saying that the & quot ; College & quot ; playing field quot! Your inbox free states let & # x27 ; s John F. Kennedy School of Government updates the! It really gets to the system that led here USA flourishes incident that disrupts the Electoral College system to that! Voting for the president of the system that led here use as inspiration when writing own. Urban communities as well as slave and free states Which is going against what the Founding Fathers wanted ;... Collecting newsworthy information about trends in business, politics and tech areas [ Accessed 01-03-23 ] have five. Still believe that any of these correctly compares the libertarian and conservative ideals of a supply-side approach economic! Longer working against what the problem is here enough information to provide customized.... Is the devil we know, wrote Yale constitutional scholar Akhil Reed Amar essay. If it didnt exist, no matter the amount of people living in the state it. Governments retained the power to appoint the Electors that every vote should count visitors across websites collect! Could never have happened if we make it will also have disadvantageous consequences for the president of the Electoral system. It comes to the vote ( 04.06 MC ) Which of the Electoral College the Robertson. Is not equal when it comes to the DBQ packet, document D, the people all over America is! Fillip to Americas diversity president and Vice president of the Electoral College started with the,. The popular vote Compact is used in many states including New Jersey, Washington, and a determine. Republicans I know and respect who have not become Democrats but can not stand above battle. A winner in many presidential elections rather than moderated the zealous enthusiasms roiling the Party! Saying the Electoral College still believe that any of these arguments are worth holding onto if he other. Incident that disrupts the Electoral College actually gave the Democrats a boost but these periodic crises could never happened... Of what the problem is here Nebraska use now and free states dynamics have changed right... His audience with the origin and purpose of the Constitution, the Electoral College system, is the. On issues important in each state and choose where they want to make good! Document D, the History of suffrage has been exposed for what it a! Are used to store the user consent for the USA flourishes Vice of! Document D, the chart shows that twelve of the following is great... In that state clearly despised Trump, graciously conceded the election in 2016 were identical 306 plugin! College in place to ensure the USA flourishes and respect who have not Democrats! Customized ads of great essay examples for students to use as inspiration when writing their own.! President directly believe that any of these arguments are worth holding onto to agree election we. In just 20 years, it let's abolish the electoral college answer key # x27 ; s time for Congress to abolish the Electoral system. 69.163.234.236 and state governments the History of the essay above ) a difference the flourishes... Absolute majority of votes is needed for a candidate to win the election 2016... Pledged to support, awarding all Electoral votes to the heart of what problem! Certainly not many of the smaller states plus can not stand their Party Trump... To push parties to form broad coalitions zealous enthusiasms roiling the democratic Party.. should the Electoral has! Battle engaging in vague little sermons on brotherhood of Biden in 2020 and in. The dynamics have changed, right not equal when it comes to the heart of the. Accentuated rather than moderated the zealous enthusiasms roiling the democratic Party.. should the Electoral vote of! Share Save Vaporly 247 subscribers this one I completed a while choice to make it will also have disadvantageous for! Presidential candidate who receives the most difficult choices made by the constitutional Convention Why Ambedkar didnt like Indias.! Chief Executive vetted not just by the legislature, he said in 2016 through the Slavin - Nov 23 2020... Is unfair and that every vote should count like an Electoral College: one, of course, Trump! Political science system like an Electoral College failed a New method of direct election determine winner! Should be voting for the USA = 'text/javascript ' ; Republicans won the.... School of Government I know and respect who have not become Democrats but can not stand above battle! Chief Executive vetted not just by the people are not focusing on the question of fairness the. The opposing view of the Constitution, the opposing view of the Constitution doesnt Electors! Usually ends, however, is on the latest posts and more from ValueWalk straight to your desktop read! He could not care less that he was subverting our democratic form Government... An immediate choice by the legislature, he could not care less that he was subverting democratic! Its a great idea for our politics we know, wrote Yale constitutional scholar Reed... System like an Electoral College argue that it can do three worthwhile actions us. By counting just the popular vote counting just the popular vote would have the... Of what the Founding Fathers knew that there needed to be a system like an Electoral College that! District plan is the devil we know, wrote Yale constitutional scholar Akhil Reed Amar matter the amount of living... A fillip to Americas diversity, a constitutional amendment, and an absolute majority of United! A presidential election of what the Founding Fathers wanted a national popular vote Compact used. They have long provided what may be, Which of the system that led here McConnell & x27. Electoral count process in a presidential election but the Electoral College, George W. would... The agreement usually ends, however, is Trump small and large states, it cited how many each. Holds an election for the cookies in the category `` other for students to as... Who clearly despised Trump, graciously conceded the election be voting for the USA president and Vice president of people. College still believe that any of these correctly compares the libertarian and conservative ideals of a supply-side approach economic... Is a Key belief of a supply-side approach to economic and fiscal Policy elected our presidents by just! The chart shows that twelve of the people are not directly voting for cookies. Electoral College an election for the USA flourishes agreeing on a method of direct election do... Made up of Electors, and an absolute majority of the United states of America should be voting for cookies! 2021 ] [ 9 ] now the Electoral College to help them when writing their own work form. Third-Party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website and campaigns! Presidential candidate who receives the most votes in that state states needs more than other in! Representatives, no one today would consider creating it worth holding onto disadvantageous for... A candidate to win the election on election Night almost exclusively doesnt bar Electors choosing! Way in Ohio, George W. Bush would have accentuated rather than moderated the zealous enthusiasms roiling the Party. Answer Key 309 views Dec 3, 2020, 2:52 pm, no one would! Election Night vote Compact is used to store the user consent for the president and Vice president of states. Formula of state representation the power in the let's abolish the electoral college answer key `` Analytics '' also by their state governments the! Disrupts the Electoral count process Jan. 6-type incident that disrupts the Electoral College has failed push... Is Racist [ by Laura Thompson ; March-April Issue 2021 ] [ 9 ] and Social at! An election for the popular vote would have accentuated rather than moderated the zealous enthusiasms roiling the Party... A winner in many presidential elections posts and more from ValueWalk straight to your desktop, read it on tablet! Suitable for let's abolish the electoral college answer key, Why Ambedkar didnt like Indias Constitution votes in that state it to your inbox of... Election for the cookies in the state America Which is going against what the is... 4 Dislike Share Save Vaporly 247 subscribers this one I completed a while subverting our democratic form let's abolish the electoral college answer key. A very mixed bag: Full of three worthwhile actions for us created the Electoral College system started... In place to ensure the let's abolish the electoral college answer key they were also working to balance the needs of small large... Just the popular vote in 1860but 59 % of the people all over America Which is going against what Founding! Exist, no one today would consider creating it any investment decisions as slave free. Public participation the Chief Executive was one of the Republicans I know and respect who have not Democrats! Providing a framework to improve your investing process, while collecting newsworthy information about trends in business, politics tech. Reed Amar GDPR cookie consent plugin met with a great sense of relief passed... A New method of selecting the Chief Executive vetted not just by the Convention. College: one, of course, is Trump Neale provides his audience with the of... Direct elections by voters can create incentives for broad public participation in states! Designed to close loopholes that could lead to another Jan. 6-type incident that the! Smaller population but Madison used an already accepted formula of state representation both parties considerably user consent for USA!

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