For example, Georgia, which has two senators and fourteen representatives, has sixteen electors. They say the system is also unfair because it encourages presidential candidates to pay attention to just a handful of swing states. When we were kids on the playground and an angry dispute ensued, someone would always shout "majority rules." And we'd vote. 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. Asked: Yesterday; Answered: 13 minute ago; Views: 5758 times; Helpful Reviewers: 3103; Likes: 6701; Dislikes: 1; The closest that the United States has come to abolishing the Electoral College occurred during the 91st Congress (1969-1971). })(); ValueWalk.com is a highly regarded, non-partisan site the website provides unique coverage on hedge funds, large asset managers, and value investing. 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. Gomez states that the National Popular Compact would not work because that the United States is a Democratic Republic not a pure Democracy. The Electoral College is essential if we are to preserve our American ideals and the Constitutional form of government that has served us so well for so long. According to Civis Analytics poll, 62 percent of the people that voted in the 2016 election would like to abolish the Electoral College. It is a process and not an actual place. In 2020, when Joe Biden won the popular vote nationally by 6 million votes, Donald Trump tried to steal the Electoral College through baseless accusations of fraud and attempts to intimidate key Secretaries of State. Two electoral votes would be awarded to the candidate winning the overall popular vote in each of the then . It does not store any personal data. Steve Slavin has a Ph.D. in economics from NYU, and has written twenty math and economics books, including The Great American Economy: How Inefficiency Broke It, and What We Can Do to Fix it. The 12th edition of his introductory economics text came out in September. Yes! A voter in Wyoming has nearly four times more influence than a voter in California. [3], There have been movements to enact state laws requiring Electors to vote for the winner of the popular election. It just so happened that Bushs brother, Jeb, also a Republican, was the governor of Florida, and another Republican, Katherine Harris, was Floridas Secretary of State, and would supervise the count and recounts. 32 minutes and 09 seconds. Shortly after, former Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. introduced his H.J.Res. After three disputed Presidential elections in just 20 years, it's time for Congress to abolish the Electoral College. The nations landmasses safeguard our natural resources, national security, and rural economy. Legendary commentator George Will once wrote an entire column to criticize me for my concerns that the Electoral College might lead to a new constitutional crisis when I said as much in the presidential contest in 1992. 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. Right now, small states have no voice because they, like big states and medium-size states across the country, are not battleground states. We all know the answer. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Mission: Providing a framework to improve your investing PROCESS, while collecting newsworthy information about trends in business, politics and tech areas. Advocates of the Electoral College argue that it can do three worthwhile actions for us. It made the executives direct election acceptable to small states, slaveholding states, and state governments. 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. 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. The funds added 7.7% overall in the second half of 2022, outperforming the 3.4% return for Read More. In fact, the election of 2020 still isnt over even though Joe Biden received more than six million votes than Donald Trump, as well as 72 more electoral votes. If it didnt exist, no one today would consider creating it. Similarly, if Republicans had to campaign in states with urban centers, they might come to notice that they need to broaden their appeal to include the interests of many Americans. There is no need to worry about the excesses of majority rule. Brennan sees hung jury among intelligence community on COVID origins, Watch live: House panel holds hearing on the fentanyl crisis, Are we headed toward a dystopian online world? Those who wish to abolish the Electoral College use the 2016 Election as an example of why the system is outdated and does not fairly represent the will of the people. In effect voters in the US never vote for the President but cast their ballots instructing electors . Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. It was also a savvy compromise. 2) Swing States vs. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Instead, it's a product of the 12th Amendment - put in place after the 1800 contest between Jefferson and Burr . Every 4 years our country makes one of the most if not the most important decisions for our future, which is our next president. Albert Gore accepted the result, even though he had won the popular vote by 540,000. Illing: A central focus of your book is this idea that ending the Electoral College would change the way candidates campaign and therefore the sorts of issues they prioritize. It preserved states rights, increased the independence of the executive branch, and avoided the danger of provincialism involved in popular election. Those ratings help inform our state-by-state assessments of the delegations. Illing: But the dynamics have changed, right? 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. The method was ultimately settled in the last days by the 11-member Brearly Committee, which proposed election by special Electors chosen by the state legislatures. Another reason why the Electoral College vote should be abolished is because, the amount of representatives for each state is not evenly split. Southern states were able to extend the three-fifths compromise, counting slaves in the presidents selection without openly parading the fact. Although he has virtually no chance of succeeding, he could not care less that he was subverting our democratic form of government. Despite sharp polarization of the parties on many issues in 21 st century politics, Republicans and Democrats broadly agree on both longstanding election reform proposals. Instead of pitting the top two candidates against each other for the same electorate to vote again, the College allows an additional filter of state Electors to make the choice. majority of the people are not always represented in the Electoral College, This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google. During three of them, the winner got fewer votes than the loser. To better understand the two sides of this historical debate we must first understand how and why the Electoral College system was created as well as its history. But Trump considers himself the winner this year. This created situations where rivals could occupy those posts. But does anyone still believe it is a great idea for our politics? This has happened five times: John Quincy Adams in 1824, Rutherford B. Hayes in 1876, Benjamin Harrison in 1888, George W. Bush in 2000, and Donald J. Trump in 2016. 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 system was started to keep urban communities as well as cities from having the power in the Presidential election. On November 8th, 2016 Donald Trump was elected president because the Electoral College voted for him. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". The Electoral College is the constitutional enshrined process through which the President of the United States is elected. This article depicts the National Popular Vote Compact as a system which would make all votes count. Newsela Answer Key: PRO/CON: Should we abolish the Electoral College? Presidential candidates wouldnt need to immerse themselves in local issues. The electors cast separate ballots for President and Vice President, after which the Electoral College ceases to exist until the next presidential election. Bush. should-the-electoral-college-be-abolished-mini-q-answer-key 3/31 Downloaded from whitelabel.nightwatch.io on February 6, 2023 by guest presidential dynasties to congressional dysfunction, Bill Clinton's impeachment to Obamacare. This hour, we look at the Electoral College, its history . Let's Abolish the Electoral College . Thanks to Donald Trump, what was once the relic of our system is now an active threat to the future of our democracy. Advocates of the Electoral College argue that it can do three worthwhile actions for us. F- It is Unfair Doc. Lewis is saying that the "playing field" is not equal when it comes to the vote. 36, an amendment that would abolish the Electoral College and require a majority popular vote, but that bill also had no actions and attracted no cosponsors. As many people think, every four years Americans vote to elect their president. It was devised during the framing of the Constitution in order to provide a method of indirect election for the Office of President. They are expected, but not constitutionally bound, to vote for the candidates they represent. Its 538 electors reflect Congress's 100 senators and 435 representatives, apportioned to each state according to the national census conducted every 10 years, electors for the District of Columbia. (2007). Interestingly, the electoral vote totals of Biden in 2020 and Trump in 2016 were identical - 306. Richard Nixon in 1968 won 43% of the popular vote but 56% of the Electoral College, and Bill Clinton in 1992 won 43% of the popular vote but 69% of the Electoral College. When the Electoral College was almost abolished? Yes. 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. My stance to abolish the Electoral College has drawn some ire. Why The Electoral College Should Be Abolished. The people of the United States of America should be voting for the president directly. Party elders, led by Barack Obama, realized the key to the general election would be moderate suburban voters, including Trump-weary Republicansmany of whom were terrified of Bernie Sanderss socialism and Elizabeth Warrens economic populism. You can view ourterms of use here. At present, however, a non-governmental organization, the National Popular Vote (NPV) campaign, proposes to reform the Electoral College by action taken at the state level through an interstate compact; 10 states and the District of Columbia have approved the NPV compact to date. A national popular election in 2020 would have made our problems immeasurably worse. The Electoral College aims for presidents who represent the nations great diversity, by obliging them to earn votes across many states and regions. In like manner, Thomas Neale also conveys the detail of how the electors are chosen and the electoral votes are established for each state. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But does anyone still believe it is a great idea for our politics? When it comes to the topic of the Electoral College, most of us readily agree that the process of electing a president has been an evolving system. DBQ packet, 1(Multiple Choice Worth 4 points) (04.06 MC) How can the Department of Education best advocate for an increase to its share of the federal budget? More amendments have been proposed on this subject than on any other in US history. Wilson said it was a valuable improvement. It gets rid of one great evil, that of cabal and corruption; and Continental characters will multiply as we more and more coalesce, so as to enable the electors in every part of the Union to know and judge of them. Mason noted that the College removed some capital objections, particularly the danger of cabal and corruption., Political scientists generally support keeping the Electoral College. For starters, direct elections by voters can create incentives for broad public participation. Mya Sims Ms. And state governments retained the power to appoint the electors. It arose from a convoluted compromise hammered out late in the Constitutional Convention, and the rise of political parties in the late 18th century and the spread of democratic ideals in the early 19th quickly undermined its rationales. But we need bipartisan support in Congress, a constitutional amendment, and a majority of the states to agree. Where the agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of fairness of the Electoral College system. Critics want the College abolished. 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 . When candidates only visit a few states and even a few regions in those few states, you really see a warping of policy priorities. 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