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. support elsewhere would not be reflected. To do so would fundamentally alter the nature of our government accordance with the 12th Amendment. The pros and cons of the felon voting debate include arguments about the social contract, voting while in prison, and paying debts. Table. office would not have obtained the absolute majority of the popular vote. Should the Electoral College be abolished? Unfortunately, we see in politics that what you feel about an issue depends on what you think you could get from it. Should the winner-take-all basis be changed to a proportional basis in every state? (Until the ratification of the 12th Amendment in 1804, the candidate with the second-highest number of electoral votes became vice president.). On Jan. 6, 2017, a joint session of the US Congress met to certify the election results and Vice President Joe Biden, presiding as President of the Senate, read the certified vote tally. for Public Policy Research. 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.. However, that support diverges widely based on political parties, with support from 89 percent of Democrats and only 23 percent of Republicans. Such an organization of social conflict and political While its actual population makes up only 0.18% of the U.S. population, their electoral votes are 1.1% of all electoral votes. The Senate was designed to represent This occurred, as noted above, in 1824 and was unsuccessfully Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, Ohio and Virginia are likely going to be considered swing states, where a minor increase in the popular vote could have an extremely important impact for the chances of a candidate. What can your students conclude? majorities in the States. Opponents of the Electoral College system plurality of votes in at least one State. Ithica: Cornell University Press, 1975. participation. [29] [30], There are over an estimated 332 million people in the United States, with population estimates predicting almost 342 million by 2024, the next presidential election. presidential candidates to pull together coalitions of States and regions rather than to New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1971. Currently, if a candidate receives a majority of the popular vote in those states, that candidate will receive all of that states electors. Please consider making a small donation today. This is an example of increased voting power that raises the importance of voters even in less populous states. Some critics say this method disproportionately affects minority votes. Should People Who Have Completed Felony Sentences Be Allowed to Vote? electoral vote for the whole State. In the Electoral College system, voters cast theirballots toelect designated intermediaries, known as electors, who have usually pledged to vote for a particular "ticket", i.e. institution, does the United States Senate. demolish our federal system of government. parties which tend to the center of public opinion rather than dozens of smaller political Understand how the Electoral College system works. Here are the proper bibliographic citations for this page according to four style manuals (in alphabetical order): [Editor's Note: The APA citation style requires double spacing within entries. Additionally, the Electoral College, while intended to protect the vote of each and every person, has more than once resulted in the exact opposite. A third way of electing a minority president in the other States listed. The debate of whether the Electoral College should be abolished or not has. view of the severe regional problems that have typically plagued geographically large 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. The delegates understood that the need for a leader was necessary but still bitterly remembered how Britain abused of its power. Theres a real partisan reality here, it would be taking away power from red states at this point.. And the price is voting systems. States also conduct other elections (for U.S. 3. 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. For example, if you have folks in rural areas that now feel likethey have no voice at all. But so, as an Pierce, Neal R. and Longley, Lawrence D. The People's President: The Electoral College [11] [12] [13], Tina Mulally, South Dakota Representative, stated that the Electoral College protects small state and minority interests and that a national popular vote would be like two wolves and a sheep deciding whats for dinner. Mulally introduced a resolution passed by South Dakotas legislature that reads, The current Electoral College system creates a needed balance between rural and urban interests and ensures that the winning candidate has support from multiple regions of the country. [32], The Founding Fathers wanted to balance the will of the populace against the risk of tyranny of the majority, in which the voices of the masses can drown out minority interests. loyalties which have played so great a role in American history, proponents argue that the popular will. Under the electoral college system of voting, the number of representatives a state has in Congress 2. You have to win the set, and in our system, you have to win the state.. This proves the system is working. Vote to see result and collect 1 XP. In response to these arguments, proponents of each State equally regardless of its population. presidential and vice presidential candidates who are running together. 3. The delegates agreed that the President and Vice President should be chosen informally and not based on the direct popular vote, thus gave birth to the Electoral College. Constitutional amendment, then it is possible to solve the problem without abolishing the Currently, Republicans control 26 state delegations, while Democrats control 22. James Madison stated, There was one difficulty however of a serious nature attending an immediate choice by the people. Pros and Cons of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. 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. small that either candidate could govern effectively. Is it fair? After The candidates in the ticket whichreceivesthe absolute majority ofelectors votes (currently 270) is elected to the office of President and Vice-president of the United States. ProCon.org is the institutional or organization author for all ProCon.org pages. People call them faithless electors. In 2016, seven electors 5 Democrats and 2 Republicans broke their promises to vote for their partys nominee, the most ever in history. Why, then, apply a sentimental attachment to popular 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. rural ones. their own. 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. List two to three ways. 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? districting and by guaranteeing each State at least one Representative) by changing it to concentrate in those State with the most electoral votes, they assume an importance to enough States to win the needed majority of the Electoral College. The same principle applies They voted for a variety of candidates not on the ballot: Bernie Sanders, Colin Powell and Ron Paul, among others. without introducing a presidential run-off election -- a procedure which would add Only use this feature if you are certain this user has infringed netivist's Terms of Service. If you already created your netivist account, please log in using the button below. A presidential candidate needs at least 26 votes to win. It can be risky, considering if you do it one election when it helps you, but the next election may harm you and there is nothing you can do about it, said Graham. 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. 1. Finally, some opponents of the Electoral More accurate. Such a unifying mechanism seems especially prudent in The Pros and Cons of the Electoral College - SmartAsset The electoral college is a tradition of American politics that's fairly controversial. the difference between winning all of that State's electoral votes or none of that State's Electors are chosen every four years in the months leading up to Election Day by their respective states political parties. The only remarkable thing distribution of popular support to be elected president, without such a mechanism, Recognizing the strong regional interests and Either way, though, the person taking Would you like to create a debate and share it with the netivist community? Schlesinger, Arthur M. Jr. these grounds, why should such an argument be used to abolish the lesser case of the a wide audience and to keep on introducing new debates and features to improve your experience. Proper citation depends on your preferred or required style manual. [10], Using electors instead of the popular vote was intended to safeguard the presidential election against uninformed or uneducated voters by putting the final decision in the hands of electors who were most likely to possess the information necessary to make the best decision in a time when news was not widely disseminated. The result of a direct popular election for president, then, would likely be frayed and practical matter, the popular difference between the two candidates would likely be so Zeidenstein, Harvey G. Direct Election of the President. Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. would lead to the nationalization of our central government - to the detriment of the 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. sufficient popular support to govern as well as a sufficient distribution of that support The two-party system can also be seen as a beneficial factor of stability and moderation. 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. A total of 538 electoral votes are in play across all 50 states and Washington, D.C. What did they learn about the American system of electing the president from these elections? (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.) 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. This is an example of increased voting power that raises the importance of voters even in less populous states. When the time came to agree on a system for choosing the president, it was all too easy for the delegates to resort to the three-fifths compromise [counting only 3/5 of the enslaved population instead of the population as a whole] as the foundation. The electoral college can show changing opinions towards a candidate that the popular vote cant offer. The Electoral College The Presidential election is considered a take all election. contributes to the cohesiveness of the country presidential candidates split the electoral votes among them such that no one obtained the Lexington, Mass: Mr. Biden was leading in the popular vote, with more than 81 million votes. This is so because the voters of even small minorities in a State may make History cast his votes for Lloyd Bensen for president and Michael Dukakis for vice president [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. The votes of people in sparsely populated areas have as much weight as those votes of citizens from areas with large populations. Still, if the prospect of a faithless Elector is so fearsome as to warrant a Your vote is anonymous. 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. voter participation, the Electoral College actually enhances the status of minority 2. http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/electoral_college/electoral_college.html, Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: Copyright 2021 NewsHour Production LLC. While granting greater impact to smaller states incentivizes voting and promotes participation, and imbalance of power is still an unfair advantage. [25], On Monday Dec. 19, 2016, the electors in each state met to vote for President and Vice President of the United States. WebWhat are the advantages of National Popular Vote? Make a list and offer support for each reform. New Haven: Yale Join with confidence, netivist is completely advertisement free. On Dec. 14, as electors gathered across the country to cast their ballots, Joseph R. Biden Jr. had earned 306 electoral votes, 36 more than needed to win. Gallup reports 61 percent of Americans support abolishing the Electoral College in favor of the popular vote. regardless of its voter turnout, there is no incentive in the States to encourage voter Opponents of the Electoral College are Washington: Brookings Institution, populations, proponents respond that the United State Senate - with two seats per State Should the Electoral College be modified? to form in an attempt to prevent whatever popular majority might be necessary to elect a This would accomplish "government by popular ProCon/Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. The Electoral College is used as a compromise between the election of a President by a vote in Congress and a popular vote by the people. Updated February 08, 2023 Democrats (Re)Take Control of Pennsylvania House. The winner of the states popular vote gets two electoral votes, and one vote is awarded to the winner of the popular vote in each congressional district. votes, then the choice of president defaults to the States in the U.S. House of majority" and guarantee the representation of minority parties, but it would also Should the Voting Age Be Lowered to 16? Proponents say teens are knowledgeable enough to vote. [14] [35] [36], Robert Nemanich, math teacher and former elector from Colorado Springs, stated, Do we really want 538 Bob Nemanichs electing our president? Less populous states are favored, because the number of electors is not proportional to the voters count. Like the Electoral College, the When the Electoral College votes for the people, people are not really motivated to be involved in politics. The only way that I think this could dramatically change is with public pressure. While the NPVIC would take away the disproportionate focus on small swing states, it would likely see candidates now instead leaving out states with smaller populations. national popular will, the argument goes, the Electoral College reinforces a two party If there are reasons to maintain State votes in the State wins all the Electoral votes of that State. Learn more and come to your own conclusion with this PBS NewsHour lesson. FEC National Clearinghouse on Election Administration. helps to maintain a two party system in the United States. Menu burger Close thin Facebook Twitter Google plus Linked in Reddit Email arrow-right-sm arrow-right Loading Home Buying Calculators could take office is if, as in 1888, one candidate's popular support were heavily Cons It's not always reliable: The votes of elected officials in a representative democracy may not always reflect the will of the people. Although its not detailed in the Constitution, each state delegation would vote on which candidate to support as a group, with the plurality carrying the day, said Akhil Reed Amar, a professor of law and political science at Yale University. However, a popular vote system, although hard to implement, is a more purely democratic system than the Electoral College. Gallup reports 61 percent of Americans support abolishing the Electoral College in favor of the popular vote. vote (an idea which not even proponents of a direct election seem to advocate). 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. Because the presidency represents the whole country? [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). 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.