representation. The debate of whether the Electoral College should be abolished or not has. Representatives. Dr. Robin Jacobson, professor and chair of politics and government at University of Puget Sound, said that One [pro of the Electoral College] is that it makes sure that states that otherwise might feel left out of the process are included despite their small size. Electoral votes incentivize voting in less populated states by increasing and emphasizing the impact of each state. every incentive to absorb minor party movements in their continual attempt to win popular for Public Policy Research. substantially to the time, cost, and effort already devoted to selecting a president and each State equally regardless of its population. ], [Editors Note: The MLA citation style requires double spacing within entries. Hillary Clinton won the popular vote but Trump won the Electoral College. 1. It only takes five people with life tenure to actually amend this Constitution through a judicial opinion, she said. Students share their findings. For example, the state of Wyoming has a population of 580,000 but holds 3 electoral votes. regardless of its population - over-represents rural populations far more dramatically. forth. winner-take-all mechanism whereby the presidential candidate who wins the most popular "faithless Elector" is one who is pledged to vote for his party's candidate for The Electoral College, Americans have their own opinions on how it is running and how it contributes to the presidential election. Some scholars have said they do not wholeheartedly agree with the decision, arguing that it endangers an electors freedom to make decisions they want and that electors are usually picked for their loyalty to a candidate or party. In order to win an election, a candidate must obtain 270 or more electoral votes, or around 50.2% of all votes. Thus, there is an incentive for This means that some voters have more power than other, depending on where they live. College point out, quite correctly, its failure to accurately reflect the [25], On Monday Dec. 19, 2016, the electors in each state met to vote for President and Vice President of the United States. President Trump had earned 232 electoral votes. If the election depended solely on the popular vote, then candidates could limit campaigning to heavily-populated areas or specific regions. contributes to the cohesiveness of the country Prevents disputed outcomes ensuring a peaceful transition of power Reduces the costs of national presidential campaigns. Rank choice voting? Managing Editor Mukunda stated, The fact that in presidential elections people in Wyoming have [nearly four] times the power of people in California is antithetical at the most basic level to what we say we stand for as a democracy. [33], The minority interests the Founding Fathers intended the Electoral College to protect were those of slaveowners and states with legal slavery. Zeidenstein, Harvey G. Direct Election of the President. Listen to a Constitution Center podcast exploring the pros and cons of the Electoral College. However, increased voting power is also among the list of cons of the Electoral College. The New York Times called the last two states on its map on Nov. 13: Georgias 16 electoral votes for Mr. Biden and North Carolinas 15 for Mr. Trump. That could change on Nov. 3 of course, because all House seats are up for election. After Elections, LLC 2019 All Rights Reserved, http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/electoral_college/electoral_college.html, the possibility of electing a minority [24], For the 2020 election, electors voted on Dec. 14, and delivered the results on Dec. 23. In total, there are 538 electoral votes, divided among the states according to population size. A person that can provide and lead a nation to greatness and success. votes in the State wins all the Electoral votes of that State. Elections. that in very close popular elections, it is possible that the candidate who wins a slight Table. nations such as China, India, the Soviet Union, and even, in its time, the Roman Empire. College's role in reinforcing a two party system, proponents, as we shall see, find this Cleveland ran again four years later and won back the White House. Push for the position and policies you support by writing US national senators and representatives. While its actual population makes up only 0.18% of the U.S. population, their electoral votes are 1.1% of all electoral votes. Conversely, the major parties have enough electoral votes to be elected president; in the event that the popular vote is Equality: With National Popular Vote, all votes are worth exactly the same and everybodys voice matters. Processes vary from state to state, with some choosing electors during state Republican and Democratic conventions. These electors are responsible to make a final decision on who will be president, their vote is the deciding final vote. American Enterprise Institute (They dont always do so.). Berns, Walter (ed.) Why, then, apply a sentimental attachment to popular Based off this Electoral College system procedure, it leads to many advantages and disadvantages that eventually lead to the winning 270 needed votes. President Joe Biden was inaugurated with Vice President Kamala Harris on Jan. 20, 2021. voter participation, the Electoral College actually enhances the status of minority Only use this feature if you are certain this user has infringed netivist's Terms of Service. movements, the practical effect of the Electoral College (along with the single-member Advantages of the NPV Interstate Compact. Like the Electoral College, the Why or why not? Human Services Updated February 21, 2023 Appointment is like an anointment and not good for society. more or less reflects the State's population size) plus the number of members it has in the difference between winning all of that State's electoral votes or none of that State's To some it is for, stating that a candidate that clearly wins the popular vote does not win, but the winner will be decided by the candidate who reaches 270 in the electoral college votes. It is uncertain what the effect on the motivation of the voters will be. Give your students this handoutand ask them to use the following online resources (or printouts from these Web sites or of these stories that you provide) in order to complete it. federal structure, important political powers are reserved to the component States. Gives too few states too much electoral power. Without the Electoral College, Bush would not have the momentum to keep running for president and run the country the way both the state and people want it to be, What Are The Pros And Cons Of The Electoral College, The Electoral College is a body of people representing the states of the US, who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president. There are a total of 538 electoral votes in the whole United States of America: 100 for the senators, 435 for the states combined, and 3 for Washington D.C. Signing onto the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact offers no more security than the current system, which will likely hinder its ability to gain traction. As of 2020, it has garnered 196 (73% of the requirement) electoral votes and has been adopted by 15 states and the District of Columbia. incentives and disincentives are likely to operate, if at all, with an even greater force. national popular majority. system, discourages third party or independent candidates, and thereby tends to restrict Whether electors should be able to change their positions has been heavily debated, so much so that the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in July that states may require electors to abide by their promise to support a specific candidate. The substitution of electors obviated this difficulty and seemed on the whole to be liable to fewest objections. [29], As Wilfred Wilfred Codrington III, Assistant Professor at Brooklyn Law School and a fellow at the Brennan Center, explained, Behind Madisons statement were the stark facts: The populations in the North and South were approximately equal, but roughly one-third of those living in the South were held in bondage. Cons It's not always reliable: The votes of elected officials in a representative democracy may not always reflect the will of the people. What are some pros and cons of electing a president based on the popular vote? consideration, should we not then abolish the Senate which represents States regardless of The Electoral College is a way of voting that gathers the majority for each individual state, allowing that states elector to vote on a presidential candidate, giving that candidate an amount of points equal to the states politicians in the Senate and House of Representatives. A presidential candidate needs at least 26 votes to win. Lexington, Mass: All other elections in the U.S. are through the popular vote. While granting greater impact to smaller states incentivizes voting and promotes participation, and imbalance of power is still an unfair advantage. Although the Electoral College is a good system for electing the president, it is time to change. Vote to see result and collect 1 XP. The New York Times defines The Electoral College as a group of people that elects the president and the vice president of the United States (Bromwich 2016). The Electoral College has been around since 1787 has a part of the Constitution. More accurate. votes, then the choice of president defaults to the States in the U.S. House of The direct consequence of using an Electoral College and a winner-take-all basis in most states is that a presidential candidate can be elected to the office without winning the popular vote, as it happened in the previous four occasions, more recently in 2000 when George W. Bush defeated Al Gore. majorities only to the Electoral College? 1. While this argument has a certain surface I think it might actually inflame [the issue of polarization]. Washington: National Clearinghouse on Election Administration, Federal Election Commission. In the 2016 Presidential Election if the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact had been in effect the winner of the national popular vote, Hillary Clinton, would have become president instead of Donald Trump. There have been 7 such Electors in If you would not change the voting process, make a list of reforms and why you would not choose to enact them. In the That is to say, when the electoral vote outcome is so obviously cast his votes for Lloyd Bensen for president and Michael Dukakis for vice president Nor is this concern entirely unfounded since there A single citizens vote really does not matter. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly, 1985. Should People Who Have Completed Felony Sentences Be Allowed to Vote? Election Commissioners. For as things stand now, no one region contains the absolute majority (270) of Yet it is One route would be a constitutional amendment, which would require two-thirds approval from both the House and Senate and ratification by the states, or a constitutional convention called by two-thirds of the state legislatures. (Ed.) The delegates saw that it was crucial to have a president and vice president, but the delegates did not want these offices to reflect how the colonies were treated under the British rule. Electoral College system contributes to the cohesiveness of the country be requiring a the Electoral College point out that is was never intended to reflect the national popular Should the winner-take-all basis be changed to a proportional basis in every state? Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming carried the same voting strength in the Electoral College (21 Electoral College Pros and Cons Pros: Gives the smaller states an equal voice. support outweighs whatever sentimental value may attach to obtaining a bare majority of In 1787, years after the founding of the United States, the Constitutional Convention met to decide how the new nation would govern itself. WebElectoral College pros and cons A candidate could be elected without the popular vote. the People Vote: Steps in Choosing the President. Like the Electoral College, the NPVIC is a subject of much debate. personal favorite knowing full well that it will not make a difference in the result. Last modified on December 9, 2021. On Jan. 6, 2021, Congress held a joint session to certify the electoral college votes during which several Republican lawmakers objected to the results and pro-Trump protesters stormed the US Capitol sending Vice President Pence, lawmakers and staff to secure locations. Popular vote is an actual count of individual votes from all states in America while the Electoral College is a measure of the House of Representatives and Senators choosing directly who the president should be (Kimberling, 1992). With many citizens not understanding whether or not their vote is actually being counted during the election, more debates have risen on if popular vote should be the deciding factor of presidential determinations instead. movements into one of the two major political parties. Lara Maupin has a Masters Degree in Secondary Social Studies Education from George Washington University and a Bachelors Degree in Anthropology and Philosophy from Mount Holyoke College. radical changes in policies from one administration to the next. First, have students meet in small groups to discuss and debate. The Senate was designed to represent further concerned about its possible role in depressing voter turnout. Please let us know! While the country has The fact is, they argue, that the original design of our federal system of government was As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. [11], Richard A. Posner, judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit and a senior lecturer at the University of Chicago Law School, further explained, There is pressure for runoff elections when no candidate wins a majority of the votes cast; that pressure, which would greatly complicate the presidential election process, is reduced by the Electoral College, which invariably produces a clear winner. [11], The electoral process can also create a larger mandate to give the president more credibility; for example, President Obama received 51.3% of the popular vote in 2012 but 61.7% of the electoral votes. Cons: Gerrymandering Proportional Plan Accessed February 21, 2023. https://www.procon.org/headlines/electoral-college-pros-cons-procon-org/. groups. resolutions: either one candidate could throw his electoral votes to the support of The same thing happened in 2000. This is meant by the Presidential Candidate receives the all of the states electoral votes for that state, if the total population of that state nominates the candidate to be President. The decision on vice president goes to the newly elected Senate, with each senator casting a vote. On election day, voters choosing a presidential candidate are actually casting a vote for an elector. What can your students conclude? extremely close, then the election defaults to that candidate with the best distribution [14] [35] [36], Robert Nemanich, math teacher and former elector from Colorado Springs, stated, Do we really want 538 Bob Nemanichs electing our president? WebPros: No winner of popular vote losing overall Cons: Basically exactly like the Direct plan District Plan Win popular vote in each district, you get one electoral vote. The peculiar system that emerged was the Electoral College. [29], The racism at the root of the Electoral College persists, suppressing the votes of people of color in favor of voters from largely homogenously white states. Already have an account on netivist? [2] [14], In 227 years, the winner of the popular vote has lost the electoral vote only five times. Its the Electoral College, not the national popular vote, that determines who wins the presidency. The right of suffrage was much more diffusive in the Northern than the Southern States; and the latter could have no influence in the election on the score of the Negroes. Learn more and come to your own conclusion with this PBS NewsHour lesson. to make much of a showing in the Electoral College. [1], Prior to the 2016 election, there were four times in US history when a candidate won the presidency despite losing the popular vote: 1824 (John Quincy Adams over Andrew Jackson), 1876 (Rutherford B. Hayes over Samuel Tilden), 1888 (Benjamin Harrison over Grover Cleveland), and 2000 (George W. Bush over Al Gore). Likewise, the winner of the popular vote is variable. A third way of electing a minority president 3. WebThe National Popular Vote Interstate Compact is an agreement where states in the compact award all their electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote, no matter which presidential candidate wins in their state, says ", ProCon.org. Yet this is less of a problem than it seems since, as a [2] [14], The two main political parties can count on winning the electoral votes in certain states, such as California for the Democratic Party and Indiana for the Republican Party, without worrying about the actual popular vote totals. I know how the president is chosen, and I believe that the set up of the electoral college is no longer. Small states only get 3 electoral votes, when really, their population, for example in Wyoming, is 584, 153. Electoral votes) as the 9,614,000 persons of voting age in the State of Florida. Congrats you just reached a new level on Netivist. After students have completed their handouts, have them debate the pros and cons of the Electoral College. While its actual population makes up only 0.18% of the U.S. population, their electoral votes are 1.1% of all electoral votes. Although the Electoral College may have been a necessary element of the government when it was originally created, the system has since become impractical for todays society. Explore this article 1 It's Fair In a direct election, everyones vote counts for the same amount. Schlesinger, Arthur M. Jr. Join with confidence, netivist is completely advertisement free. population? tends to be more sensitive to ethnic minority and other special interest groups than does The same goes for Republican strongholds and a Democratic candidate. Should we not correct the minor distortions in the House (caused by If there are reasons to maintain State This type of system would give the individual voter a much more significant influence. Imagine you have been elected to the presidency and have the power to amend this portion of the constitution, which allows for the electoral college. individual State populations is more important than the opinion of the national population A candidate could be elected without the popular vote. For in a While the system may seem fair, the Electoral College is at its core an outdated process that heavily favors small swing states, causing the election to not always align with popular vote of the American people.
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