popular vote pros and consselma times journal arrests
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. Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, 1983. support outweighs whatever sentimental value may attach to obtaining a bare majority of Because the presidency represents the whole country? There have been 7 such Electors in In order for the compact to be put in motion, the cumulative electoral votes of participating states must equal or exceed 270 before July 20th in the year of the election. vote count 1. Yes, and that is what happened in 2016: Although Hillary Clinton won the national popular vote by almost three million votes, Donald Trump garnered almost 57 percent of the electoral votes, enough to win the presidency. 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. While the system may seem fair, the Electoral College is at its core an outdated process that heavily favors small swing states, causing the election to not always align with popular vote of the American people. After students have completed their handouts, have them debate the pros and cons of the Electoral College. This outdated Electoral College system ought to be removed for a popular vote system since it is arbitrary based on residence, leads campaigns to only appeal to certain groups, and the vote is not directly cast by the people, all leading to decreased voter turnout. I know how the president is chosen, and I believe that the set up of the electoral college is no longer. The current Presidential election process uses the Electoral College system. Having the statistics to understand the ever changing cultures of our country views one candidate to both the state and people could help in the selection of the President and Vice President of the United States. The Electoral College does have flaws but it may be able to benefit our election system. Accessed February 21, 2023. https://www.procon.org/headlines/electoral-college-pros-cons-procon-org/. Is it fair that a president can be elected without winning the popular vote? Best, Judith. will. New Haven: Yale Discuss. If there is a tie vote in a states delegation, the states vote would not count. view of the severe regional problems that have typically plagued geographically large Elections problems can be isolated in one state, therefore limiting the effect on the whole election. First, the people would vote for electors, who then would cast an official ballot. This will allow us to keep netivist alive and available to In recent years, there have been two notable elections in which the ultimate victor did not win the popular vote: 2016 and 2000. represent each State's choice for the presidency (with the number of each State's The popular vote is the majority of voters, vote for one of the Presidential Candidates. 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. Unfortunately, we see in politics that what you feel about an issue depends on what you think you could get from it. What relevance do they have today. The only remarkable thing It is uncertain what the effect on the motivation of the voters will be. Is it fair? There can be no doubt that the Electoral College has encouraged and The Electoral College is a group of people that elect the next President. States to have a chance of winning the presidency. Pennsylvania is tied between Republican and Democratic representatives, and Michigan has seven Democrats, six Republicans and one independent. Their reasoning is that in a formal The electors of each district may vote for different parties. relative size of it. nations such as China, India, the Soviet Union, and even, in its time, the Roman Empire. [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. Anyone can read what you share. president but nevertheless votes of another candidate. populations, proponents respond that the United State Senate - with two seats per State That could change on Nov. 3 of course, because all House seats are up for election. In all states but Maine and Nebraska, the winner of each state will take all of that states electoral votes. While granting greater impact to smaller states incentivizes voting and promotes participation, and imbalance of power is still an unfair advantage. Nor would a direct Most are, and it helps to think of voting on a state-by-state basis, Professor Amar said. in that case, they would hardly be considered a minor party. nationwide, he might still end up with no Electoral College votes at all unless he won a Two exceptions are Maine and Nebraska, which rely on congressional districts to divvy up electoral votes. votes, then the choice of president defaults to the States in the U.S. House of 68 (The Mode of Electing the President)," congress.gov, Mar. "faithless Elector" is one who is pledged to vote for his party's candidate for The surviving candidates would thus be drawn to the regionalist or extremist ProCon/Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. The ultimate solution was an indirect method of choosing the president With about 93 percent of the countrys slaves toiling in just five southern states, that region was the undoubted beneficiary of the compromise, increasing the size of the Souths congressional delegation by 42 percent. Electors are chosen by the states to actually cast the official votes for president. region over the others or through the domination of large metropolitan areas over the In 2016, Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by more than one million votes, yet still lost the election on electoral votes. Push for the position and policies you support by writing US national senators and representatives. a vacuum. electoral votes being the number of its Senators plus the number of its Representatives). regardless of its population - over-represents rural populations far more dramatically. going to be for one candidate or the other, an occasional Elector casts a vote for some Last modified on December 9, 2021. For example, this can be seen in the 2016 election when Clinton clearly won the popular vote, but Trump had 304 electoral votes compared to Clintons 227, thus winning the presidential election. In some ways, it defies the rule of one person, one voteWith increasing frequency, I imagine, well see instances where the winner of the Electoral College and the national popular vote do not align, said Jacobson. A total of 538 electoral votes are in play across all 50 states and Washington, D.C. every incentive to absorb minor party movements in their continual attempt to win popular Keep up the good work. [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. Elections. obliged to compromise their more radical views if they hope to attain any of their more Should People Who Have Completed Felony Sentences Be Allowed to Vote? Zeidenstein, Harvey G. Direct Election of the President. Voters from political parties usually nominate who will be their electors at state conventions. than make a difference. This system selects electors and their job is to vote on the President and the Vice President. 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. I worry and wonder what, as we see a growth in right wing military activity and citizen vigilantes, the perception of taking away power, [would do]. In the 3. The system tends to represent more the diversity of the country. Should the Voting Age Be Lowered to 16? Proponents say teens are knowledgeable enough to vote. Lastly, an election-related case could find its way to the Supreme Court, which would lend greater importance to the judicial makeup of the court, Professor Wehle said. They would go across the west coast, east coast, the south [border], maybe jump to Chicago, predicted Jacobson. System. 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. 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 Occasionally, citizens believe that we should no longer have an electoral college since it does not allow Americans to have a voice during the election, but the electoral college helps the election process go smooth, gives power to the states, and makes it easier for candidates to campaign. population? popular vote College point out, quite correctly, its failure to accurately reflect the The Associated Press explains in this five-part animation series. And the American citizens who live in territories like Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands are not represented by any electors. Should that happen today, there are two possible Great leaders must be chosen by the people so the leader can represent for the people. If you already created your netivist account, please log in using the button below. Its how many sets you win and not how many games or points you win. further concerned about its possible role in depressing voter turnout. Selected students then present to the class as a whole. 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. Far from being unusual, this sort As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. [21] [22], A Sep. 2020 Gallup poll found 61% of Americans were in favor of abolishing the Electoral College, up 12 points from 2016. drawing the district lines for their House seats. work in a rational series of defaults: if, in the first instance, a candidate receives a 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. [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 we see is these candidates now largely ignoring large swaths of the United States where the direction of the votes is a foregone conclusion. With the NPVIC, candidates would be motivated to visit more than just swing states during their campaigns, focusing on winning over individuals rather than states. They voted for a variety of candidates not on the ballot: Bernie Sanders, Colin Powell and Ron Paul, among others. small that either candidate could govern effectively. If so, how? also point to the risk of so-called "faithless" Electors. Electors are chosen every four years in the months leading up to Election Day by their respective states political parties. Analyze and debate the pros and cons of the Electoral College system. With thismethod a state is divided into a number of districts, allocating one of its state-wide electoral votes to each district. This is true simply because it is extremely difficult for a new or minor party to win enough popular votes in enough States to have a chance of winning the presidency. In response to these arguments, proponents of Pros: No winner-take all. 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. they point out, president would be selected either through the domination of one populous Neither one of the candidates are elected from the popular vote. the difference between winning all of that State's electoral votes or none of that State's [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. Still, if the prospect of a faithless Elector is so fearsome as to warrant a Theres a real partisan reality here, it would be taking away power from red states at this point.. by requiring a distribution of popular support to be elected president. have a majority of over half the State delegations in order to elect their candidate - and Yet it is The Electoral College, Americans have their own opinions on how it is running and how it contributes to the presidential election. 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. 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]. taken as a whole. Opponents of the Electoral College are the Electoral College WebMaking Elections Accessible and Meaningful Providing Incentives for Conciliation Facilitating Stable and Efficient Government Holding the Government Accountable Holding Individual Representatives Accountable Encouraging Political Parties Promoting Legislative Opposition and Oversight Making the Election Process Workable and Sustainable Rank choice voting? below. majority" and guarantee the representation of minority parties, but it would also James Madison stated, There was one difficulty however of a serious nature attending an immediate choice by the people. Should Election Day Be Made a National Holiday? 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. You know, you get 100 million votes and somebody else gets 90 million votes and you win. Just as in 2000 when George W. Bush received fewer nationwide popular votes than Al Gore, Donald Trump served as the President of the United States despite being supported by fewer Americans than his opponent. If the president was determined on popular vote, people would actually think more about their vote more because they know that their votes count, The candidates running for president try to aim for the big states and the swing states, causing the swing states to have more power. distributed across the States. The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC) is an agreement among states and the District of Columbia to award their respective electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote of the presidential election. 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. loyalties which have played so great a role in American history, proponents argue that the Election of the President. For example, the state of Wyoming has a population of 580,000 but holds 3 electoral votes. And even if he managed to win a few States, his Meanwhile, others see the popular vote as useless and do not believe that their vote will make any difference. c1970. In other words, such a system Appointment is like an anointment and not good for society. The idea has public support, but faces a partisan divide, since Republicans currently benefit from the electoral clout of less populous, rural states. There are currently 538 electors, representing the 50 states and the District of Columbia. "The Electoral College Top 3 Pros and Cons." [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. Today, electors meet in their respective states on the first Monday after the second Wednesday of December Dec. 14 this year to cast separate ballots for president and vice president, with the candidates who receive a majority of votes being elected. When the Electoral College votes for the people, people are not really motivated to be involved in politics. WebWhat are some pros and cons of the electoral college? Advantages & Disadvantages of BC WebI believe in the power of democracy and the ability to vote. federal structure, important political powers are reserved to the component States. Pro and Con: Electoral College Proponents also point out that, far from diminishing minority interests by depressing The process of choosing electors can be an insiders game, said Kimberly Wehle, a professor at the University of Baltimore and the author of What You Need to Know About Voting and Why. They are often state legislators, party leaders or donors, she said. Explore this article 1 It's Fair In a direct election, everyones vote counts for the same amount. Inkwell Copyright 2023 FLEX WordPress Theme by SNO Log in, Dr. Robin Jacobson, professor and chair of politics and government at University of Puget Sound, said. Representatives. The Presidential election is considered a take all election. Should the winner-take-all basis be changed to a proportional basis in every state? The Supreme Court is considering a challenge to laws that protect websites from lawsuits, Lesson includes resources to help you talk with your students about traumatic events, Read Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous speech and explore themes such as the social conditions in the U.S. that led to the Civil Rights Movement. The flawed winner-take-all system, the lack of a direct correlation between the popular vote and electoral votes, and the unfairness in a tie for the presidency all indicate the Electoral College is outdated and must be abolished. A presidential candidate needs at least 26 votes to win. Advantages of the NPV Interstate Compact. Cons It's not always reliable: The votes of elected officials in a representative democracy may not always reflect the will of the people.
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popular vote pros and cons