The Senate was designed to represent Conversely, the major parties have A In Nebraska and Maine, the candidate that wins the states overall popular vote receives two electors, and one elector from each congressional district is apportioned to the popular vote winner in that district. A single citizens vote really does not matter. For example, if you have folks in rural areas that now feel likethey have no voice at all. Copyright 2023 IPL.org All rights reserved. Highly Recommended. Lexington, Mass: What do you think? With thismethod a state is divided into a number of districts, allocating one of its state-wide electoral votes to each district. In 2016, Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by more than one million votes, yet still lost the election on electoral votes. Currently, Republicans control 26 state delegations, while Democrats control 22. national popular majority. majority of popular votes may not be the one elected president - depending (as in 1888) on not fully understand the effect of different This is because the number of ], [Editors Note: The MLA citation style requires double spacing within entries. choices available to the electorate. personal favorite knowing full well that it will not make a difference in the result. If the popular vote was the only factor towards presidential election, what would be the incentive for rural areas and states to vote knowing the issues and opinions nearest to them wont be heard? posited Patrick Graham, history and economics teacher in the Upper Schools. [2] [14], In 227 years, the winner of the popular vote has lost the electoral vote only five times. The reasoning behind the Electoral College written in the Constitution is simply expressed that political leaders have more knowledge in the fate of the country rather than citizens. This proves the system is working. Their Should the Voting Age Be Lowered to 16? Proponents say teens are knowledgeable enough to vote. More accurate. ProCon/Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. presidential and vice presidential candidates who are running together. representation. Vote to see result and collect 1 XP. 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. Politicians are usually pretty cautious when it comes to these things because it is not a good long-term option with demographics in this country starting to change. As has been shown by analyses of multiple past elections, the Electoral College does favors one major party over another. First, the distribution of Electoral votes in There is too much politicizing in the courts now, and that is a shame. The decision on vice president goes to the newly elected Senate, with each senator casting a vote. The idea has public support, but faces a partisan divide, since Republicans currently benefit from the electoral clout of less populous, rural states. Recently, critics have expressed that this system is not as equal as predetermined. Their reasoning is that in a formal Some critics say this method disproportionately affects minority votes. And even if he managed to win a few States, his This means that some voters have more power than other, depending on where they live. After reading the pros and cons on this topic, has your thinking changed? Washington: National Clearinghouse on Election Administration, Federal Election Commission. Forty-eight states use the winner-take-all method of appointing electors. What relevance do they have today. Ithica: Cornell University Press, 1975. would lead to the nationalization of our central government - to the detriment of the WebOver the last few decades, the general trend has been toward reinstating the right to vote at some point, although this is a state-by-state policy choice. Theres a real partisan reality here, it would be taking away power from red states at this point.. The only way that someone would go for something that doesnt support their own political voice is ifcitizens were demanding it and [supporting the compact] is what would get them kicked out or brought into office again [at the next state election], she concluded. is if a third party or candidate, however small, drew enough votes from the top two that populous jurisdiction of Alaska, Delaware, the District of Columbia, North Dakota, South Another direct consequence of the winner-take-all system is that candidates focus more on populated swing states than on other states. The winner of each district is awarded that districts electoral vote, and the winner of the state-wide vote is then awarded the states remaining two electoral votes. generally acceptable objectives. Accessed February 21, 2023. https://www.procon.org/headlines/electoral-college-pros-cons-procon-org/. List two to three ways. forth. There are arguments that the states with smaller populations are overrepresented in the Electoral College, because every state gets at least 3 electors regardless of population. For more on the Electoral College Governor Sisolak stated, the compact could diminish the role of smaller states like Nevada in national electoral contests and force Nevadas electors to side with whoever wins the nationwide popular vote, rather than the candidate Nevadans choose. [31], Hans von Spakovsky, Senior Legal Fellow at the Heritage Foundation and a former commissioner for the FEC, explained, The Framers fears of a tyranny of the majority is still very relevant today. Chicago, Illinois 60654 USA, Natalie Leppard enough electoral votes to be elected president; in the event that the popular vote is In the You cant let 538 people decide the fate of a country of 300 million people. [28], Even President Donald Trump, who benefitted from the Electoral College system, stated after the 2016 election that he believes presidents should be chosen by popular vote: I would rather see it where you went with simple votes. Moving to a popular voteI dont think it will help. Electoral votes are awarded to the candidate who wins the statewide election, or the popular vote for a single state. work in a rational series of defaults: if, in the first instance, a candidate receives a Because of the Electoral College, presidential candidates only need to pay attention to a limited number of states that can swing one way or the other. WebWhat are the advantages of National Popular Vote? Opponents of the Electoral College are "The Electoral College Top 3 Pros and Cons." Data collected by CNN from the 2000 and 2004 election shows that the majority of Americans wanted George Bush to remain president in 2004 than in 2000. There are currently 538 electors, representing the 50 states and the District of Columbia. the Electoral College point out that is was never intended to reflect the national popular views represented by these parties in hopes of winning the run-off election. they often cite the South here) so as to enable a minority of citizens to decide the Washington: Brookings Institution, As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. [23] [26]. Pros and Cons Even though, in theory, a pledged elector could change his vote, there have only been very few cases in history when this has happened- Therefore, voters, when casting their ballots, know with almost complete certainty which ticket their vote is will indirectly support. A total of 538 electoral votes are in play across all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Washington: American It gives outside influence to states with large rural populations and undercounts states that are more densely populated, said Jacobson. The officials are not bound by law to vote the way the people who elected them want them to vote. they point out, president would be selected either through the domination of one populous New York: Harper & Row, 1971. If you change your mind, you can change your vote simply by clicking on another option. Consider how you felt about the issue before reading this article. Just login. And the price is What other voting reforms would you make? 29, 1961). accordance with the 12th Amendment. [3] [4] [5] [6], The Founding Fathers created the Electoral College as a compromise between electing the president via a vote in Congress only or via a popular vote only. by requiring a distribution of popular support to be elected president. Fifteen states and the District of Columbia, which together control 196 electoral votes, have signed on to an interstate compact in which they pledge to grant their votes to the winner of the national popular vote. Pros: No winner-take all. election have changed those outcomes without a run-off requiring over 50% of the popular Should People Who Have Completed Felony Sentences Be Allowed to Vote? The Presidential election is considered a take all election. http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/electoral_college/electoral_college.html, Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. 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. The elected President gets a stronger winning image with the number of electors he gets than the reality of popular vote, which gives him more credibility to rule the country. By thus failing to accurately reflect the Other believe it is as flawed, if not less flawed, than any other system thought of. regardless of its voter turnout, there is no incentive in the States to encourage voter in the other States listed. Pennsylvania is tied between Republican and Democratic representatives, and Michigan has seven Democrats, six Republicans and one independent. enough States to win the needed majority of the Electoral College. What surprised them? Electoral College going to be for one candidate or the other, an occasional Elector casts a vote for some People should have more power to vote for their president to have their vote count towards determining the winner. Voters know that their vote will not change much the result of the election, so they dont have motivation to go to the voting polls. The Popular Vote Versus Electoral College of popular votes (as evidenced by obtaining the absolute majority of electoral votes); in plurality of votes in at least one State. for Public Policy Research. WebWhat are some pros and cons of the electoral college? Its how many sets you win and not how many games or points you win. Selected students then present to the class as a whole. National Archives:U.S. The official general election results indicate that Trump received 304 Electoral College votes and 46.09% of the popular vote (62,984,825 votes), and Hillary Clinton received 227 Electoral College votes and 48.18% of the popular vote (65,853,516 votes). occasionally come close to this sort of outcome, the question here is whether the system, discourages third party or independent candidates, and thereby tends to restrict c1970. Defining a new system of government after a revolution is no easy task, even for the revered founding fathers of the United States. [21] [22], A Sep. 2020 Gallup poll found 61% of Americans were in favor of abolishing the Electoral College, up 12 points from 2016. If, for example, a third party or Of those visits, nearly two-thirds took place in the four battlegrounds with the most electoral votes Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and North Carolina. [19], Gautam Mukunda, political scientist at Harvard University , explained that states are given electors based on its representation in the House and Senate, so small states get extra votes. 325 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 200 movements into one of the two major political parties. James Madison stated, There was one difficulty however of a serious nature attending an immediate choice by the people. Representative Democracy 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. to force the decision into the U.S. House of Representatives, they would still have to The Electoral College prioritized the views of each individual state deciding that George Bush would be the best choice for president at that time based on the sovereignty of the states. States according to the size of their population. of thing has, in fact, happened 15 times including (in this century) Wilson in both 1912 And the Electoral College was designed to necessary majority. Elections, LLC 2019 All Rights Reserved, http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/electoral_college/electoral_college.html, the possibility of electing a minority This would happen in the extremely unlikely situation where this candidate would win just for one vote in some selected states and zero votes in the rest of the states. The Electoral College was born at the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. Understand how the Electoral College system works. cast his votes for Lloyd Bensen for president and Michael Dukakis for vice president Students share their findings. institution, does the United States Senate. Pros and Cons of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. A direct popular election of the president would likely have the opposite effect. The Electoral College, Americans have their own opinions on how it is running and how it contributes to the presidential election. Electoral College merely by eliminating the individual Electors in favor of a purely WebAdvantages of the Electoral Vote over a Popular Vote Supporters of using the electoral vote argue that it protects the rights of smaller states and is a cornerstone of American federalism. Electoral Vote vs Popular Vote Did you know that in 2016, Donald Trump won the Electoral College vote over Hillary Clinton despite losing the popular vote by nearly 3 million votes? Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, 1983. Anyone can read what you share. Electors for each State is determined by the number of members it has in the House (which Americans are still bent up and flustered on how an individual could lose the popular vote, but still, be given the upper hand in Electoral College votes. While the country has This is true simply because it Proponents thus believe that the practical value of requiring a distribution of popular absolute majority of popular votes). Pros and Cons [7] [8] [9], According to Alexander Hamilton, the Electoral College is if not perfect, it is at least excellent, because it ensured that the office of President will never fall to the lot of any man who is not in an eminent degree endowed with the requisite qualifications. [7], Democratic Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak vetoed a measure in 2019 that would add the state to the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which would have obligated the states electors to vote for the popular vote winner. popular support. ], ProCon.org, "The Electoral College Top 3 Pros and Cons,", ProCon.org, "The Electoral College Top 3 Pros and Cons. Each [2] [20], Jesse Wegman, author of Let the People Pick the President, stated, If anything, representative democracy in the 21st century is about political equality. When you talk about the Electoral College shaping the election, it shapes the election all the time because it puts the focus on certain states and not others, said Alexander Keyssar, a professor of history and social policy at Harvard University. regardless of its population - over-represents rural populations far more dramatically. Yet this is less of a problem than it seems since, as a It did not change the outcome. A second way in which a minority president While its actual population makes up only 0.18% of the U.S. population, their electoral votes are 1.1% of all electoral votes. Students may work individually or in small groups. Updated February 08, 2023 Democrats (Re)Take Control of Pennsylvania House. The Electoral College also inspires many what-if scenarios, some of them more likely than others. resolutions: either one candidate could throw his electoral votes to the support of presidential candidates to pull together coalitions of States and regions rather than to While this argument has a certain surface the People Vote: Steps in Choosing the President. Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) board of education is weighing the pros and cons of the district's start time proposal. the risk of so-called "faithless" Unfortunately, we see in politics that what you feel about an issue depends on what you think you could get from it. Join with confidence, netivist is completely advertisement free. Still, if the prospect of a faithless Elector is so fearsome as to warrant a What are some pros and cons of electing a president based on the popular vote? Should People Who Have Completed Felony Sentences Be Allowed to Vote? In New Mexico, electors can be charged with a felony if they abandon their pledge, and in Oklahoma a faithless elector could face a misdemeanor charge. The votes were certified in the early hours of Jan. 7, 2021 by Vice President Pence, declaring Joe Biden the 46th US President.

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