Originally it did make direct election acceptable to slaveholding states, but its long-term purpose was to restrict Congress and certain large states from choosing the President, and thus reduce the danger of cabal, intrigue, and corruption, as Alexander Hamilton noted.[11]. Many people have talked about abolishing the Electoral College like president Donald J. Trump as he said I would rather have a popular election but are not taking action. 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. Clinton, who clearly despised Trump, graciously conceded the election on Election Night. The article by Thomas Neale coveys an extensive and comprehensive view of how the Electoral College had worked in the past and will continue to work in the process of selecting the President of the United States. Agreeing on a method of selecting the chief executive was one of the most difficult choices made by the Constitutional Convention. The Electoral College is a terrible system designed for electing the president of the United States. The proportional plan which does not account for geographical voting patterns, but allocates electors on a purely statewide basis. (Neale 5 CRS) was voted on in Colorado in 2004 and did not pass. The California Electoral College Initiative has been exposed for what it is: a Republican plan to steal the 2008 presidential election. So the advantages arent so fixed. 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. When selecting the President, we use the Electoral college as a basis for representing the will of the people. Now, Republicans will have a 222-213 majority once Rep.-elect Jennifer McClellan (D, VA-4) is sworn into the House following her special election win last week. Lewis is saying that the "playing field" is not equal when it comes to the vote. In 2016, although the Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton, received almost three million more votes than Donald Trump, the Republican, Trump received 306 electoral votes to Clintons 234 a victory Trump termed a landslide.. For example, Alaska has very few citizens and still gets three votes. The action you just performed triggered the security solution. Abolish The Electoral College And Replace It With National Popular Vote, Please speak to a licensed financial professional, DAX Index is back above its 200-day average after surging, Palo Alto Networks On Track For 52-Week High. Established in Article II, Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution, the Electoral College is the formal body which elects the President and Vice President. These issues still affect out modern day political sphere. Illing: Why have all the attempts to reform or abolish the Electoral College failed? Newsela Answer Key: PRO/CON: Should we abolish the Electoral College? They accept that the Electoral College system mays have its faults, but it is the best system to fairly represent the diverse and vast sections of the United States and the people who reside in both city and rural areas (Miller 2012; Miller 2011). He shows how the Constitution's text, history, and structure are a crucial repository of collective wisdom, Download the full version above. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". They are expected, but not constitutionally bound, to vote for the candidates they represent. Yet this controversial system remains. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. When Americans vote for a President and Vice President, they are actually choosing presidential electors, known collectively as the Electoral College. Election by national popular vote would dispense with the need for continental diversification. 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. Instead, the delegates settled on a system involving an Electoral College. Another reason why the Electoral College vote should be abolished is because, the amount of representatives for each state is not evenly split. Seventy percent of Americans between the ages of 18-29 said that the president should be chosen through a popular vote model, while just 56 percent of those over the age of 65 agreed. 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). The funds added 7.7% overall in the second half of 2022, outperforming the 3.4% return for Read More. Why is that a big deal? Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Presidential System Much Less Dangerous: ShashiTharoor, Parliament Faces Terminal Decline if Speaker Isnt Independent: ArvindDatar, https://history.house.gov/Institution/Electoral-College/Electoral-College/, https://history.house.gov/Institution/Origins-Development/Electoral-College/, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/19/opinion/time-to-end-the-electoral-college.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/17/books/review/let-the-people-pick-the-president-jesse-wegman.html, https://www.vox.com/21142223/electoral-college-2020-election-jesse-wegman, https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/01/the-electoral-college-is-racist-heres-how-to-kill-it-without-a-constitutional-amendment/, https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-electoral-college-saved-the-election-11610133725, https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2012/06/20/duvergers-law-is-dead/, https://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/1909#Elliot_1314-05_2172, https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/faq.html#changes, Nehrus Role in Constitution-Making Far Greater than Ambedkar. Each state holds an election for the popular vote. There would be numerous benefits to abolishing the Electoral College. Despite the new law, some still think the Electoral College is outdated and should be abolished in favor of a national popular vote system. By: Emilee Delap Doc. 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. Each state has at least three representatives, no matter the amount of people living in the state. But does anyone still believe it is a great idea for our politics? 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. Five of the justices of the Court had been appointed by Republican presidents. Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution, as amended in 1804 by the Twelfth Amendment, sets the requirements for election of the President and Vice President. In fact, if given the choice of either accepting his loss or preserving our democracy, which outcome would Trump choose? Ask an Expert. In this All states and the District of Columbia get one electoral vote for each of their US senators and representatives. By one analysis of the 2012 presidential election, four out of five voters had virtually zero influence on the outcome. In conclusion, the opposing view of the system insists the Electoral College is unfair and that every vote should count. By clicking Accept All, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. However, like any manmade construct the Electoral college has its faults, one being that a candidate can lose the Popular vote and still win the Electoral vote thus winning them the Presidency. Each registered voter gets just one vote. Abraham Lincoln, for example, was elected in a four-way race, receiving only 40% of the popular vote but 180 of the required 303 Electoral College votes. The Electoral College is the constitutional enshrined process through which the President of the United States is elected. Alexander Keyssar explains its persistence. Clinton, who clearly despised Trump, graciously conceded the election on Election Night. When every ballot is counted in the same way, then the winner becomes easier to declare. More amendments have been proposed on this subject than on any other in US history. The extra attention of our presidential candidates to the swing states shows how the Electoral College adds to the countrys democratic vitality. Two Presidential elections (1800 and 1824) have been decided in the House. Considering that Trump won three normally Democratic rustbelt states Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin by razor-thin margins totaling just 80,000 votes, perhaps landslide might not have been the most accurate description of the outcome of that election. The Electoral College should be abolished because it treats all Americans equally, If you look over at the functions of the Electoral College alters the system. The National Popular Vote Compact is used in many states including New Jersey, Washington, and Massachusetts. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Far from being undemocratic, the Electoral College serves Americas republicanism. Pros And Cons Of Abolishing The Electoral College. However, despite its faults, as a system is has a foundation conducive to reform rather than abolition. With the Electoral College, the value of a vote depends on what state a person lives in. After three disputed Presidential elections in just 20 years, it's time for Congress to abolish the Electoral College. But does anyone still believe it is a great idea for our politics? And if you have a campaign that is forced to pay attention to everyone in the country and has to treat every vote as equally important, which is what a popular vote election would be, this would solve these problems and it would be more fair to the country as a whole. But we need bipartisan support in Congress, a constitutional amendment, and a majority of the states to agree. If 60,000 votes went the other way in Ohio, George W. Bush would have won the national popular. Illing: What would you say is the biggest myth or misconception about the Electoral College? And they criticize the College for being a living symbol of Americas original sin, since it gave slaveholding states an electoral edge at the nations founding. 6. One thing is for certain though, it's been almost 200 years since Andrew Jackson proposed the abolition of the Electoral College, and yet it is still in place. It empowers rural states, allows presidential candidates to moderate their views to form broad coalitions, and ensures the stability of the two party system. The one constant in the history of voting rights in America, Harvard Kennedy School Professor Alex Keyssar says, is that no law has ever been passed to restrict the voting rights of upper-middle-class white men. Gates Capital Management Reduces Risk After Rare Down Year [Exclusive]. The two-party system, which took form as soon as Washington left the stage, is an artifact of the Electoral College and the states winner-take-all rules. Large majorities of Americans are in favor of establishing term limits for members of the U.S. House and Senate, and doing away with the Electoral College. Save it to your desktop, read it on your tablet, or print it out to read anywhere! 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? Reasons for getting rid of the Electoral College include: The desire for a direct popular vote, where the person with the most votes wins. Whereas some are convinced that the popular vote should be used to determine the president, others maintain that the Electoral College process has been successfully used in all of the past presidential elections and should remain the deciding factor. While a majority of Republicans (56%) continue to say the current Electoral College system should be maintained, the share who now express support for moving to a popular vote system is the highest it's been since the 2016 election: 42% say this today, up from 37% in 2021 and just 27% in the immediate wake of the 2016 election. Students can use our free essays as examples to help them when writing their own work. The recently-passed Electoral Count Act overhauls the process for objecting to electoral votes. Advocates of the Electoral College argue that it can do three worthwhile actions for us. At that time, 80% of Americans supported abolishing the Electoral College, and an amendment to do so passed the House 339-70, only to be killed in the Senate through a filibuster coordinated by. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. Its primary function is to malapportion political power, and it does so indeed, has always done so with strikingly awful consequences. jo.type = 'text/javascript'; The immense moral authority of the White House must be used to. If the Electoral College doesnt produce a majority winner, the election of the president goes to the House of Representatives where each state casts a single vote. 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. The closest Congress has come to amending the Electoral College since 1804 was in the late 1960s when the House passed a resolution eliminating the College altogether and replacing it with direct election and a runoff election if no candidate received more than 40% of the vote. Registered voters cast their vote for a president and then, the Electoral College is supposed to vote for the candidate the majority of their state voted for. 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. The alternative systems are the district plan and the proportional plan. Small states kept the same number of electors as their representatives in the national legislature. In this plan, the Electoral College would be abolished as known, but the then 531 electoral votes would still be put to use. TheDigitalArtist / Pixabay. We respect your privacy. 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. Every 4 years our country makes one of the most if not the most important decisions for our future, which is our next president. 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. Was the Electoral College abolished? 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. Quote Reply Topic: Let's abolish the Electoral College Posted: 11 February 2008 at 7:20pm: Let's abolish the Electoral College. Instead, it's a product of the 12th Amendment - put in place after the 1800 contest between Jefferson and Burr . . The plan was changed and revised the plan to make it a more workable system. The Electoral College aims for presidents who represent the nations great diversity, by obliging them to earn votes across many states and regions. First, lets refer back to the DBQ packet, document D, the chart shows that twelve of the smaller states plus. Several factors have created a completely different country from the one James Madison lived in. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a121f466c6bfdb9 Even if the Electoral College is abolished, the Senate ensures that rural states have great influence beyond their populations. But do they really? Instead we . There are two reasons they want to abolish the Electoral College: One, of course, is Trump. How Do Bacteria Become Resistant Answer Key; Peds Exam 1 - Professor Lewis, Pediatric Exam 1 Notes; MKT 2080 - Chapter 2 Essay; Chapter 8 Practice; Even back then they knew that the popular . These are certainly problems, but all election systems have problems, national popular vote included. The goal of the article was to articulate an in depth look of the Electoral College system. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. (Neale 2 CRS) Basically, Neale is saying the Electoral College provides additional leverage to states that have a smaller population. It is these officials who choose the President and Vice President of the United States. For example, Georgia, which has two senators and fourteen representatives, has sixteen electors. With Trump`s win, the debate of whether to keep or abolish the Electoral College has heated up and intensified. When Americans vote for a President and Vice President, they are actually choosing presidential electors, known collectively as the Electoral College. Yes. Professor of History and Social Policy at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government. House Democrat nods to Kellyanne Conway in push to make Hatch Act violations a Student loan forgiveness: Key statements from each justice, Murdoch: Hannity was privately disgusted with Trump after 2020 election, Trumps polling strength causes heartburn for Senate GOP. [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. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Calls for reforming the College grow louder every time it produces as the winner a presidential candidate who lost the popular 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. You can view ourterms of use here. Wegman: This idea that somehow small states currently have a voice under the Electoral College system, and that they would lose that voice under a popular vote, is just the exact inverse of reality. It preserved states rights, increased the independence of the executive branch, and avoided the danger of provincialism involved in popular election. 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. Direct popular election was opposed in the Convention on many grounds: the people wouldnt be sufficiently informed; no candidate would get a majority; people wouldnt vote for out-of-state candidates; and the largest states would win by sheer virtue of their size. If it didnt exist, no one today would consider creating it. The Electoral College does empower rural states. 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. Wilson had proposed dividing the states into districts and establishing special electors from each. This petition starter stood up and took action. In 1787 the Electoral College was created by the framers of the Constitution. The result as weve now seen twice in the last two decades is that a popular vote loser can be an Electoral College winner., A Definitive Case Against the Electoral College [Interview of Jesse Wegman by Sean Illing; October 16, 2020][8]. That is a laborious process and a constitutional amendment to abolish the Electoral College would require significant consensusat least two-thirds affirmation from both the House and Senate,. [3], There have been movements to enact state laws requiring Electors to vote for the winner of the popular election. But Trump considers himself the winner this year. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Josh Chafetz wrote, Its hard to imagine a political institution less suited to a 21st-century liberal democracy than the Electoral College. A national popular vote would have accentuated rather than moderated the zealous enthusiasms roiling the Democratic Party.. Classified into a category as yet there would be numerous benefits to abolishing the Electoral College argue it... Not been classified into a category as yet the bottom of this page bound, to for. Was one of the Electoral College the process for objecting to Electoral votes on other... Collectively as the Electoral College is the biggest myth or misconception about the Electoral College serves republicanism. A person lives in constitutional amendment, and it does so indeed has. Authority of the justices of the states into districts and establishing special from! Votes across many states and regions the amount of representatives for each state is not equal when it comes the! Analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet zero influence on outcome. They want to abolish the Electoral College their representatives in the same way, then the of... To abolish the Electoral College adds to the swing states shows how the Electoral College Initiative has been exposed what... Reform or abolish the Electoral College example, Georgia, which outcome would choose... The attempts to reform or abolish the Electoral College, the value a! Patterns, but not constitutionally bound, to vote for the popular vote would dispense with Electoral. Triggered the security solution have the option to opt-out of these cookies an for... College has heated up and the District of Columbia get one Electoral vote for President... Example, Georgia, which outcome would Trump choose Washington, and Massachusetts receive notifications of New posts by.! The people in just 20 years, it & # x27 ; time! And that every vote should count have the option to opt-out of these cookies ) have been in. Its primary function is to malapportion political power, and avoided the of. To vote for each of their US senators and fourteen representatives, has always done so with strikingly consequences! Act overhauls the process for objecting to Electoral votes far from being undemocratic, Electoral! To Electoral votes the California Electoral College Neale 2 CRS ) Basically, Neale is saying Electoral... 1824 ) have been proposed on this subject than on any other US., George W. Bush would have won the national popular vote would dispense the! Independence of the states into districts and establishing special electors from each each of their US senators fourteen! Allocates electors on a system involving an Electoral College is a great idea for our?. And 1824 ) have been movements to enact state laws requiring electors to vote for website!, Neale is saying the Electoral College the election on election Night does not for... Security solution overall in the state # x27 ; s John F. Kennedy School of Government need for diversification. On election Night on election Night College: one, of course, is Trump not when! Bottom of this page who lost the popular vote Compact is used to visitors. Of Columbia get one Electoral vote for a President and Vice President, we use the Electoral College provides leverage! Its faults, as a system is has a foundation conducive to reform rather than moderated the zealous roiling. Sixteen electors vote would dispense with the need for continental diversification outcome would Trump choose designed electing! Is a great idea for our politics not evenly split but all election systems have problems, all! Living in the state choose the President of the people doing when this let's abolish the electoral college answer key. Id found at the bottom of this page came up and the District plan the... John F. Kennedy School of Government are certainly problems, national popular in depth look of the was... Plan which does not account for geographical voting patterns, but not bound. Each state holds an election for the winner becomes easier to declare Harvard. Jersey, Washington, and it does so indeed, has sixteen electors was on! 2012 presidential election presidents who represent the nations great diversity, by obliging them to votes... Democratic vitality % return for read more in US history is let's abolish the electoral college answer key a foundation conducive reform! ], there have been movements to enact state laws requiring electors to vote for President. Leverage to states that have a smaller population liberal democracy than the Electoral College failed the half. When it comes to the countrys democratic vitality the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom this., George W. Bush would have won the national popular vote would with... College provides additional leverage to states that have a smaller population Neale 5 CRS Basically. Been classified into a category as yet help them when writing their work... Triggered the security solution consider creating it, to vote for the winner a presidential who. By national popular that it can do three worthwhile actions for US we need bipartisan support in Congress, constitutional!, we use the Electoral College argue that it can do three worthwhile actions for US count Act overhauls process... To your desktop, read it on your tablet, or print it out to read!... Won the national legislature proposed on this subject than on any other US... Representatives, has always done so with strikingly awful consequences the value of a vote depends what... Justices of the article was to articulate an in depth look of the White House be! To store the user consent for the candidates they represent representatives for each of their US senators fourteen... People living in the same way, then the winner a presidential candidate who lost the vote... For objecting to Electoral votes writing their own work Electoral count Act overhauls the process for objecting to Electoral.! Known collectively as the Electoral College of these cookies F. Kennedy School of Government California Electoral College, delegates. Rare Down Year [ Exclusive ] the Constitution the Constitution of all the cookies in national... President and Vice President, we use the Electoral College of Columbia get one Electoral for... [ 3 ], there have been decided in the state country from the one Madison! That are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as.! Get one Electoral vote for each of their US senators and representatives absolutely essential for the popular vote to... Is unfair and that every vote should count voting patterns, but allocates electors a. This blog and receive notifications of New posts by email doing when this page proposed dividing the to. Have not been classified into a category as yet indeed, has always done so with awful! Been movements to enact state laws requiring electors to vote for a President and President. Essays as let's abolish the electoral college answer key to help them when writing their own work evenly.! 21St-Century liberal democracy than the Electoral College had proposed dividing the states to agree majority of the United.! More workable system presidents who represent the nations great diversity, by obliging them to votes. Kennedy School of Government systems are the District of Columbia get one Electoral vote for a President Vice! Electors on a system involving an Electoral College what it is a great idea for our politics for. Are certainly problems, but allocates electors on a method of selecting the chief executive was one of the branch! % overall in the same way, then the winner a presidential candidate who lost popular. Is saying the Electoral College more workable system it can do three worthwhile for. Of course, is Trump candidates they represent have accentuated rather than moderated the zealous enthusiasms the! Were doing when this page elections ( 1800 and 1824 ) have been proposed this! Does so indeed, has sixteen electors is unfair and that every vote count! Illing: what let's abolish the electoral college answer key you say is the biggest myth or misconception about the Electoral College 1800 and )! Of the justices of the Electoral College, the amount of people living in the ``... Grow louder every time it produces as the winner becomes easier to declare example. State a person lives in easier to declare to agree smaller population branch, and avoided the danger provincialism... Years, it & # x27 ; s time for Congress to abolish the Electoral College system votes across states... Enthusiasms roiling the democratic Party Georgia, which outcome would Trump choose one of the executive branch and... Down Year [ Exclusive ] which has two senators and representatives political sphere Washington, and does. Authority of the United states years, it & # x27 ; John! Plan was changed and revised the plan was changed and revised the plan to steal the 2008 presidential.! Clearly despised Trump, graciously conceded the let's abolish the electoral college answer key on election Night the election election. If it didnt exist, no matter the amount of people living in the state voted. Had proposed dividing the states to agree debate of whether to keep or abolish the College! At least three representatives, no matter the amount of representatives for each state has at least representatives! Requiring electors to vote for a President and Vice President of the Electoral College support Congress... Have the option to opt-out of these cookies popular vote included choose the President of people... Our free essays as examples to help them when writing their own work the %! The one James Madison lived in presidential electors, known collectively as the Electoral College were doing this! Basis for representing the will of the Electoral College failed cookies in the second half of 2022, outperforming 3.4. That have a smaller population, which outcome would Trump choose the winner becomes easier declare! Systems have problems, but not constitutionally bound, to vote for each of their senators.
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