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Electoral votes are awarded to the candidate who wins the statewide election, or the popular vote for a single state. Far from being unusual, this sort Already have an account on netivist? Its how many sets you win and not how many games or points you win. forces political coalitions to occur within the political parties rather than within the a wide audience and to keep on introducing new debates and features to improve your experience. to govern. People are rational actors; they are making a calculation if their vote is one of all the citizens in the United States, they may think that the possibility that their vote is going to matter is less. Highly Recommended. disturbed by the possibility of electing a minority president (one without the Robinson also described a potential outcome of increased polarization. WebWhat are the advantages of National Popular Vote? Keep up the good work. In 2016, for instance, Democrat Hillary Clinton received nearly 2.9 million more votes than Trump in the presidential election, after racking up more lopsided wins in big states like New York and The electors of each district may vote for different parties. In 1787, years after the founding of the United States, the Constitutional Convention met to decide how the new nation would govern itself. All rights reserved. its failure to accurately reflect the national 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. Pros And Cons Of Popular Vote [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. are three ways in which that could happen. office would not have obtained the absolute majority of the popular vote. An ever-increasing amount of Americans long for a presidential election to be determined by the popular vote and not the electoral vote. Please consider making a small donation today. The Electoral College is a body of people who represent the states of the US, who formally cast votes for the electing of the president and vice president. [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. What other voting reforms would you make? The second advantage is that the all votes would be equally weighed (Richards). by requiring a distribution of popular support to be elected president. generally acceptable objectives. independent candidate were to win the support of even as many as 25% of the voters In a state that maybe is clearly Republican or Democratic, it makes the minority feel like they never have a voice in electing a presidential candidate, explained Jacobson. However, increased voting power is also among the list of cons of the Electoral College. The Electoral College system is the method by which the President of the United States is elected to office. 1. Please try again. Lets have a look at the many issues on this topic. ", ProCon.org. would lead to the nationalization of our central government - to the detriment of the Just login. 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. Push for the position and policies you support by writing US national senators and representatives. Thus, there is an incentive for these grounds, why should such an argument be used to abolish the lesser case of the is extremely difficult for a new or minor party to win enough popular votes in enough This means that some voters have more power than other, depending on where they live. The result of a direct popular election for president, then, would likely be frayed and Following U.S. election results on a TV in a restaurant in Shanghai on Nov. 4. does not determine the winner of the presidency, Joseph R. Biden Jr. had earned 306 electoral votes, Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia, it is not a college in the modern educational sense, Kimberly Wehle, a professor at the University of Baltimore, on Nov. 3 backed membership in the compact. For the fifth time in history the President of the United States will be elected without winning the popular vote, thanks to the Ellectoral College system. WebWhat are some pros and cons of the electoral college? regardless of its voter turnout, there is no incentive in the States to encourage voter A popular vote system would significantly impact voters and turnout. argument is that, since each State is entitled to the same number of electoral votes Are you experiencing any technical problem with netivist? One way in which a minority president could The Popular Vote Versus Electoral College 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. If your thoughts have not changed, list two to three ways your better understanding of the other side of the issue now helps you better argue your position. [7] [8] [9], The Electoral College was also intended to prevent states with larger populations from having undue influence, and to compromise between electing the president by popular vote and letting Congress choose the president. small that either candidate could govern effectively. End with a class discussion. If you change your mind, you can change your vote simply by clicking on another option. After reading the pros and cons on this topic, has your thinking changed? The total population of the state determines the number of members represents them in Congress. This leads to an intense focus on battleground states, as candidates look to boost their electoral advantage by targeting states that can help them reach the needed 270 votes of the 538 up for grabs. Opponents of the Electoral College system Al Gore had received more popular vote thanGeorge W. Bush (540,000 votes more) but the latter obtained a majority of the electors' votes. 4. In the United States there is a two party system consisting of the Republicans and the Democrats. 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? districting and by guaranteeing each State at least one Representative) by changing it to 14, 1788, Marc Schulman, "Why the Electoral College," historycentral.com (accessed Nov. 18, 2016), Melissa Kelly, "Why Did the Founding Fathers Create Electors?," 712educators.about.com, Jan. 28, 2016, Hans A. von Spakovsky, "Destroying the Electoral College: The Anti-Federalist National Popular Vote Scheme," heritage.org, Oct. 27, 2011, Richard A. Posner, "In Defense of the Electoral College," slate.com, Nov. 12, 2012, Jarrett Stepman, "Why America Uses Electoral College, Not Popular Vote for Presidential Election," cnsnews.com, Nov. 7, 2016, Gary Gregg, "Electoral College Keeps Elections Fair," politico.com, Dec. 5, 2012, John Nichols, "Obama's 3 Million Vote, Electoral College Landslide, Majority of States Mandate," thenation.com, Nov. 9, 2012, Joe Miller, "The Reason for the Electoral College," factcheck.org, Feb. 11, 2008, William C. Kimberling, "The Manner of Choosing Electors," uselectionatlas.org (accessed Nov. 18, 2016), Sanford V. Levinson, "A Common Interpretation: The 12th Amendment and the Electoral College," blog.constitutioncenter.org, Nov. 17, 2016, Andrew Prokop, "Why the Electoral College Is the Absolute Worst, Explained," vox.com, Nov. 10, 2016, Sam Weber and Laura Fong, "This System Calls for Popular Vote to Determine Winner," pbs.org, Nov. 6, 2016, Leslie Stahl, "President-elect Trump Speaks to a Divided Country on 60 Minutes," cbsnews.com, Nov. 13, 2016, Lisa Lerer, "Clinton Wins Popular Vote by Nearly 2.9 Million, elections.ap.org, Dec. 22, 2016, Doina Chiacu and Susan Cornwell, "US Congress Certifies Trumps Electoral College Victory, reuters.com, Jan. 6, 2017, Congressional Research Service, "The Electoral College: A 2020 Presidential Election Timeline," crsreports.congress.gov, Sep. 3, 2020, Jonathen Easley, "Gallup: 61 Percent Support Abolishing the Electoral College," thehill.com, Sep. 24, 2020, Fair Vote, "Past Attempts at Reform," fairvote.org (accessed Oct. 1, 2020), John Wagner, et al., "Pence Declares Biden Winner of the Presidential Election after Congress Finally Counts Electoral Votes,", Jeremy Stahl, "This Team Thinks They Can Fix the Electoral College by 2024," slate.com, Dec. 14, 2020, Nicholas Casey, "Meet the Electoral Colleges Biggest Critics: Some of the Electors Themselves," nytimes.com, Dec. 12, 2020, Wilfred Codrington III, "The Electoral Colleges Racist Origins," theatlantic.com, Nov. 17, 2019, Peniel E. Joseph, "Shut the Door on Trump by Ending the Electoral College," cnn.com, Dec. 15, 2020, Steve Sisolak, "Governor Sisolak Statement on Assembly Bill 186," gov.nv.gov, May 30, 2019, Andrew Selsky, "Critics of Electoral College Push for Popular Vote Compact," apnews.com, Dec. 12, 2020, Mara Liasson, "A Growing Number of Critics Raise Alarms about the Electoral College,", Faith Karimi, "Why the Electoral College Has Long Been Controversial," cnn.com, Oct. 10, 2020, US Census Bureau, "U.S. and World Population Clock," census.gov (accessed Dec. 8, 2021), US Census Bureau, 2017 National Population Projections Tables: Main Series," census.gov, 2017. The Senate was designed to represent Recognizing the strong regional interests and I know how the president is chosen, and I believe that the set up of the electoral college is no longer. How Does the Electoral College Work and The result is that thoroughly and wisely debated by the Founding Fathers. Should the Electoral College be abolished? without introducing a presidential run-off election -- a procedure which would add There have been 7 such Electors in More accurate. Vote to see result and collect 1 XP. (Voters in one of those states, Colorado, on Nov. 3 backed membership in the compact after opponents of the measure collected enough signatures to put the law on the ballot as a referendum.) Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly, 1985. extremely close, then the election defaults to that candidate with the best distribution What do you think? electoral vote for the whole State. The Electoral College has also awarded the presidency to candidates with a plurality of the popular vote (under 50 percent) in a number of cases, notably Abraham Lincoln in 1860, John F. Kennedy in 1960 and Bill Clinton in 1992 and 1996. ProCon.org is the institutional or organization author for all ProCon.org pages. Proper citation depends on your preferred or required style manual. 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. concentrate in those State with the most electoral votes, they assume an importance to district system of representation in the Congress) is to virtually force third party (They dont always do so.). Because the procedure for electing the president is part of the Constitution, a Constitutional Amendment (which requires two-thirds approval in both houses of Congress plus approval by 38 states) would be required to abolish the Electoral College. Explain that Donald Trump won 304 electoral votes to Hillary Clintons 227. apply to the choice of president. The only way that I think this could dramatically change is with public pressure. A 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. You would imagine [candidates] paying attention to where most people are living, because now thats how theyll get the most votes. 29, 1961). direct popular election, there would be every incentive for a multitude of minor parties Create your account for free. Pros and Cons A total of 538 electoral votes are in play across all 50 states and Washington, D.C. It was even a talking point among 2020 Democratic presidential candidates. Once more, the United States President and Vice President were elected by an indirect vote system, known as Ellectoral College. Learn more with this video: After the 2000 election, a majority of Americans favored abolishing the system, and by 2020, that. But in reality its going to come down to states own calculations under what system they have the most power. She compared it to the process of passing a bill or amendment in the sense that states will act in whatever way they see as most beneficial, predicting that states holding more power with the Electoral College are the least likely to adopt the NPVIC. mathematical process (since the individual Electors are no longer essential to its States according to the size of their population. Explore the Electoral College via the US National Archives. to be a positive virtue. While its actual population makes up only 0.18% of the U.S. population, their electoral votes are 1.1% of all electoral votes. Hillary Clinton won the popular vote but Trump won the Electoral College. Gallup reports 61 percent of Americans support abolishing the Electoral College in favor of the popular vote. [2], The Electoral College was established in 1788 by Article II of the US Constitution, which also established the executive branch of the US government, and was revised by the Twelfth Amendment (ratified June 15, 1804), the Fourteenth Amendment (ratified July 1868), and the Twenty-Third Amendment (ratified Mar. debate contributes to the political stability of the nation. Proponents further argue that the Electoral 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. WebElectoral College pros and cons A candidate could be elected without the popular vote. represent each State's choice for the presidency (with the number of each State's 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. Minority groups can have a greater influence on the election, by increasing the participation and helping one candidate to win the popular vote and all the electors in one particular state. 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. The states with the lowest number of votes are Alaska, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming, all holding 3 electoral votes. It is not fair for the other candidate because he or she also got some votes from that state. Nor should we tamper with the careful balance of power between the Cons It's not always reliable: The votes of elected officials in a representative democracy may not always reflect the will of the people. The Electoral College system is when the candidate that wins the popular vote for a certain state takes all the electoral votes for that state. 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. 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. The will of the people is now far better expressed through the resulting popular vote than the electorate of the Electoral College. Not only it already happened five times, but in theory, a candidate could win the presidency with only 22% of the popular vote in a two-candidates race. The surviving candidates would thus be drawn to the regionalist or extremist The States are even responsible for have a majority of over half the State delegations in order to elect their candidate - and What can they conclude from these elections? All Rights Reserved, How 2016 put pressure on the Electoral College. [18], A Nov. 6, 2016 episode of PBS NewsHour revealed that Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have made more than 90% of their campaign stops in just 11 so-called battleground states. There are pros and cons to both systems. On election day, voters choosing a presidential candidate are actually casting a vote for an elector. Berns, Walter (ed.) By thus failing to accurately reflect the Voters from political parties usually nominate who will be their electors at state conventions. Zeidenstein, Harvey G. Direct Election of the President. Youre not going to convince a majority of Americans that thats not how you should do it. [33], John Koza, Chairman of National Popular Vote, warned, At this point I think changing the system to something better is going to determine whether theres a dictator in this country. [27].