what would happen if the electoral college was abolishedwhat would happen if the electoral college was abolished

There would need to be a Constitutional amendment if the compact idea doesnt work. Most Americans, by a wide margin, believe the Electoral College should be abolished. 2016 is on track to be the fifth election in U.S. political history in which the candidate who wins the most votes is not the one elected president -- giving rise to another round of calls to. Your membership has expired - last chance for uninterrupted access to free CLE and other benefits. The Electoral College thus presents democratic risks without serving any of its original purposes. Abolishing the Electoral College seems to be the next logical step in that process. Map. The 2010 census is therefore valid for the 2012, 2016, and 2020 Presidential elections. There are millions of Republicans in deep-blue states, like Massachusetts and California. The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. In addition to the NPVIC discussed above, there are two variations on this theme that could reduce the odds that someone could win the presidency without winning the national popular vote. It is no secret that the administrations of Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama all suffered, from the outset, from efforts to imply that there was something improper and unworthy or even suspicious in their elections. After a long battle in Florida Bush won the state narrowly, giving him an Electoral College victory of 271 to 266 over Al Gore. "Every vote matters," said Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., in Mississippi on Monday. Technically, it is . Our votes would count the same wherever they were cast. Based on your understanding, do you believe the Electoral College is democratic? Having an election in which victory went to a candidate carrying a single national constituency might not wholly cure this problem, but it might well work to mitigate it. Instead of a politician trying to appeal to someone with specific needs, the adoption of a general platform that maximizes votes in urban centers would become the emphasis of each party. Warren says she wants to get rid of the Electoral College, and vote for president using a national popular vote. This process stopped the process that was used in England to select a Prime Minister. There can be distinctive advantages to one party in a decade where three election cycles are possible. According to Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., if the Electoral College of the United States was abolished, the collapse of the already weakened two-party political system would be fast tracked; resulting in multiplication of splinter parties. While politicians continue to put major focus on highly-populated urban cities of many states, such as Cleveland, Ohio, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Electoral College pushes candidates to address issues in states as a whole and not just in metropolitan regions. Why? In fact, there is already a movement brewing among states to agree to award their electors to whichever candidate wins the national popular vote. The political game in the United States would change dramatically without the Electoral College present. The current system is weighted too heavily in favor of celebrity appeal, demagogic displays and appeals to narrow special interests. How the Electoral College helps preserve our constitutional system. Should we abolish the Electoral College? - Constitution Center US election 2020: What is the electoral college? - BBC News Who verifies if a candidate is qualified to run for President? This is because the president is not . These Americans, chosen for loyalty to their political party, will vote for the presidential candidate who won their states popular vote. A party system was instituted really to fulfill that old function of the Electoral College's, which is to narrow people down and get responsible people to be candidates for the presidency. Majority supports changing Electoral College system for U.S In the first instance, states could decide to award 2 Electoral College votes (EVs) to the winner of the national popular vote (NPV) and the remainder to the winner of the state. Myth No. And even though it is widely acknowledged that the Electoral College is a ticking time bomb that could seriously erode American democracy, none of these attempts has been successful. Alternative 2: Two electoral votes to national popular vote winner; remainder apportioned by congressional district, *Each of these races included faithless electors, such that the total of electoral votes, as shown, does not equal 538. Democracy is, at its core, about fair, equal representation one person, one vote. It provides for separate votes for president and vice president and specified that those individuals must be from different states. From hair trends to relationship advice, our daily newsletter has everything you need to sound like a person whos on TikTok, even if you arent. There are three basic arguments in favor of the system the framers of the Constitution gave us, with little sense of how it would actually work. The truth is . Find all our Student Opinion questions in this column. Have an idea for a Student Opinion question? That means if you live in a rural area, your vote may count more toward who gets to be the eventual president. It no longer serves the intended job. The pros and cons of abolishing the Electoral College must go beyond the 65% of people who want it gone. This polling reflects why a constitutional amendment to get rid of the Electoral College will not pass the U.S. Congress any time soon, nor would it have anywhere near the necessary support in state legislatures. In recent years, a new scheme has emerged that claims it can bypass the seemingly insurmountable impediment of a constitutional amendment process but have the same result of nullifying the Electoral College: The National Popular Vote Compact (NPV). This spring, numerous candidates for president expressed support for either abolishing or changing the Electoral College, which ultimately picks the U.S. president. A lot of people dont even want to talk about changing the Electoral College because of this idea. Under the current plan, states that join will not activate the compact until enough states have joined to total 270 electoral votes. As Americans look at their election processes, a complete review of the pros and cons of abolishing the Electoral College is useful when taking this unique structure into account. In this case, 19 state legislatures are currently controlled solely by Democrats. If the remaining states with Democratic control of the legislature (Maine, Nevada, and Virginia) were to sign on, it would add an additional 23 Electoral College votes. Of the 700 attempts to fix or abolish the electoral college, this one nearly succeeded In 1969, Congress almost approved a constitutional amendment to get rid of the electoral college,. Republicans especially worry about tipping the balance away from their party. Using bots can streamline some law firm work, American Bar Association 61% of Americans Support Abolishing Electoral College by Megan Brenan Story Highlights 61% prefer amending Constitution to use popular vote to elect president 89% of Democrats, 23% of Republicans. But dont forget, Bush won the popular vote four years later by three million votes. Electors manage the needs of the state and community instead of following the will of the general public throughout the country. Only two Republicans voted for someone other than Trump and Pence. Today the pact has the support of states and Washington D.C. that total 181 electoral votes, largely those that have gone for Democrats in recent years. The winner-take-all method is nowhere in the Constitution. [2] The compact would then be 43 Electoral College votes short of going into effect. Five times in our history, presidential candidates who have won more votes than their opponent have still lost the election. There have been three: John Quincy Adams, Benjamin Harrison and George W. Bush. That might invite legal challenges from candidates or voters' groups if it took place. Each of those states has Democratic control of the state legislature. Does the Electoral College need to be reformed? Tell us about it. Learn more about how to use our free daily writing prompts for remote learning. That means the information receives an update every 10 years. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. But swing states distort our national priorities, even when the president wins the popular vote. This ensures that smaller rural and industrial communities will have their issues addressed by those seeking office. Does this interactive influence how you feel about the Electoral College? 6. It also prevents candidates from going into states where the electorate typically votes for the other party. Maine Department of Administrative and Financial Services, The Electoral College is a ticking time bomb, Its time to abolish the Electoral College, Two cheers for the Electoral College: Reasons not to abolish it, according to the Congressional Research Service, https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2020/10/21/can-the-electoral-college-be-subverted-by-faithless-electors/, Policy lessonsand surprisesfrom the Reimagine Rural podcast, Justice Thomas, gift reporting rules, and what a Supreme Court code of conduct would and wouldnt accomplish, Why is federal spending so hard to cut? The chances of a recount would increase dramatically with election. Do you think any of these arguments, or others, are convincing reasons for preserving the Electoral College as it stands now? Do you agree with Mr. Wegman that we should change how the Electoral College works to ensure that the popular vote chooses the president? Instead, theyre voting for their states representatives in the Electoral College, who will then vote for the president. Yes. When Americans are polled about the Electoral College, most of them say that they want it to disappear. Enslaved people couldnt vote, but they were still counted toward the slave states representation in Congress. That fall, former Vice President Richard M. Nixon defeated . But reforming the Electoral College does not rank high among our national problems. The compact would only go into effect once the number of states involved surpasses the 270 Electoral College vote threshold that is required to win the presidency. A second variation would be to award two Electoral College votes from each state to the winner of the national popular vote and award the remaining electors to the winner of each congressional district (CD). Source: Daily Kos Elections. Thats because, regardless of its overall merits, change is always rooted in the politics of the day. This design promotes the two-party system. Not this year. For almost the first half century of the republic, presidential candidates were chosen by the caucuses of the two parties in the House and the Senate. The interests of the minority would no longer receive protection. It causes some votes to have greater weight than others. A supporter of President-elect Joe Biden holds up his cellphone to display the electoral college map, outside the Philadelphia Convention Center on Nov. 7. If a candidate wins the popular vote in a state, even by a single vote, they get all of that states electoral votes. The way it gets implemented is the result of dozens of state laws, which evolved over time as the country settled into a two-party system. # Because the District of Columbia is awarded Electoral College votes under the 23rd Amendment, we include its votes here as if it were a state. It doesnt have to be this way. The primary benefit of the electoral college is that it works to protect the best interests of the minority in every election. How the Electoral College Was Nearly Abolished in 1970 - History Abolishing the Electoral College would get rid of this confusing process. The two parties have chosen the same year in which to nominate a person whom large numbers of Americans, probably a majority, regard as unfit (though not for the same reason). In part, that is because the Electoral College is constitutionally mandated, and abolishing it would require a constitutional amendment. That same view will doubtless color the 2016 election as well. What are the positive arguments in favor of replacing the existing electoral system with a national popular vote? As we all know only too well, in practice this archaic system means that the person who wins the most votes may not win the election. For instance, in 1900 New York was the biggest state in the union with 7,268,894 people and the state with the median population, Louisiana, had 1,381,625 people. Sticking to the electoral college format allows us to use electors as intended instead of relying on all of the votes counting. 11. One of the ways that states are considering a way to go around the Electoral College is called the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. The reasons for the Electoral College may not be relevant any more. So lets put the power to select the president where it actually belongs, in the hands of all the people. The founders fought like cats and dogs over how the president should be chosen. #Marianne2024 . The amendments Fully overhauling the way the president is selected would take a Constitutional amendment, which would require the votes of two-thirds of. 3Qs: Should the Electoral College be abolished? - News The following table shows how this would have changed the outcome in the two contested elections of the 21st century and includes 2004 for comparison. This action would allow the popular vote winner to take the White House. But explaining exactly how it does this remains a mystery. If, say, environmental sustainability or abortion or the Second Amendment is your dominant concern, it does not matter whether you live in Wyoming or California, Pennsylvania or Delaware. Thats not true either. Some laws simply state that electors must vote for the candidate of the party they represent; others require electors to sign an oath or a pledge. Anyone can read what you share. Britannicas ProCon.org lists three reasons: 1) The founding fathers thought the Electoral College was the best method for electing the president.2) The Electoral College ensures that different parts of the country, such as Iowa and Ohio, are involved in selecting the president, rather than just the most populated areas.3) The Electoral College guarantees certainty, whereas a popular vote system might lead to no candidate getting a majority. There were two additional votes for Sanders that were invalidated in Minnesota and one for Kasich in Colorado. 4. Trump made a similar argument earlier this week, warning that "smaller states & then entire Midwest would end up losing all power.". It is true that the Electoral College no longer serves its original purposes, and that it creates a grave risk that a candidate not favored by a majority of the people will, from time to time, be elected president. The supporters of the NPV are not hiding their goal: They are trying to circumvent the AK constitutional amendment process and manipulate the Electoral College out of existence.11. The Electoral College is outlined in Article II, Section 1, of the U.S. Constitution. Eliminating this barrier could mean that some parts of the country never become part of the overall campaign. But the fact is that we are now one country, whereas in 1789 we were 13 colonies desperately trying to hold onto some semblance of their independencehence a political deal was struck that now threatens the very democracy for which they were trying to create a lasting framework. Why? Yet, ratification happens not by popular vote but by state legislature. **Here, we treat the District of Columbia as a single congressional district (as the 23rd Amendment to the Constitution does for the purposes of the Electoral College). They disagreed so strongly that the final system wasnt adopted until the last minute, thrown together by a few delegates in a side room. It should be noted, there is debate about the permissibility of such a proposal and its going into effect would likely face a flurry of lawsuits. What would happen if the Electoral College was eliminated? Residents of places like Puerto Rico and Guam would have their votes be counted in the final total, and these locations consistently vote for one party. 326 Galvez Street Only Rutherford Hayes, with a 3% difference, won the electoral college despite being in the minority. Having the states play an autonomous role in presidential elections, it is said, reinforces the division of governing authority between the nation and the states. Most Americans would breathe a sigh of relief, I believe, if we had a system capable of choosing the U.S. equivalent of Theresa May instead of Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton. The Constitution provides no express role for the states after appointment of its presidential electors, the 10th Circuit panel said, adding, Once appointed, (electors) are free to vote as they choose.. And thats it. Although he said that the system was far from perfect, it was at least excellent. Every four years, tens of millions of Americans votes magically disappear before the real election for president happens about six weeks after Election Day, when 538 electors convene in state capitals across the country to cast their votes for president. RT @Valkary: THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE SHOULD BE ABSOLVED AND ABOLISHED. PDF It's time to abolish the Electoral College - Brookings Take the Electoral College, Americas system for picking the president. The elected officials of both parties have incentives to choose candidates with an eye toward popular electability and governing skill. As discussed above, the only practical way of ending the Electoral College is by changing the ways in which states use the popular vote to award electors to the presidential candidates. In May, the Washington State Supreme Courtuphelda state election law that said an elector who did not vote for the candidate he pledged to support could be fined up to $1,000 in civil penalties. Getting rid of the Electoral College would radicalize politics. Why, or why not? Over 2.8 million more people voted for Hillary Clinton instead of Donald Trump, but it was Trump who won the White House because of the results of the electoral map. However, it is possible to win the presidency without winning the popular vote. So, the state at the median had 19% of the population of the largest state. If you live in a state where youre in the political minority, your vote is effectively erased. Third, defenders of the Electoral College also claim that it supports the underlying value of federalism. 2? It causes some votes to have greater weight than others. [1] Over the years some of them, so-called faithless electors, have deviated from this norm but in 29 states and the District of Colombia state laws exist which bind the electors to vote for the winner of the popular vote. Electoral college reform: What would happen if Congressional districts Despite political challenges to reforming the manner in which the United States selects its president, there is danger in maintaining the status quo. The election, as Mr. Trump would say though not for the right reasons is rigged. It wasnt the first time a president won by losing or the second or even the fourth. Even when it is against the law for these folks to vote for someone other than what the electoral results in their state indicate, there is always an option to become a faithless elector under the American structure. In two of these elections, a. That means the major party that can maintain its base could win elections without a clear majority. Remember what we said back in Myth No. Including prescription drug benefits and all seniors at every income level. But they spend almost no time talking about issues that matter to millions of voters elsewhere, like public transportation in New York or climate change in California. According to Alexander Hamilton in Federalist Paper Number 68, the body was a compromise at the. What would happen if the Electoral College was abolished? In each case, the number of faithless electors who exercised that behavior would not have had a meaningful impact on the outcome. Continually updated tools and resources to help move your practice and the legal profession forward during COVID-19 and beyond. Because Donald Trump lost to Hillary Clinton in the popular vote, yet was the clear victor in the ultimately definitive electoral college, the strange, disproportionate nature of electoral. It can be fixed. Americas auto industry auto industry auto industry At least in part because its located mostly in swing states, like Michigan and Ohio, states whose electoral votes he needed to win. US election 2020. Does It Need to Be Fixed? Editors Note: In 2016, we asked two professors to debate whether the Electoral College should cease to be the mechanism used for selecting the U.S. president. On September 18, 1969, the U.S. House of Representatives voted by an overwhelming 338 to 70 to send a constitutional amendment to the Senate that would have dismantled the Electoral College,. Keeping the electoral college restricts the voting to acknowledged states only. LIASSON: It would take a constitutional amendment to abolish the Electoral College, so that's not going to happen. It's time to renew your membership and keep access to free CLE, valuable publications and more. But in the end, Republicans and Democrats are virtually tied. First, there's the Constitutional problem. Stanford University. States have the power to award their electors however they like. It's another way the system ensures it's perpetuity. Adding even more candidates into this discussion without the protections of this structure could create circumstances where someone with less than 35% of the vote could potentially win a four-year term. This means that every election, 80 percent of American voters, roughly 100 million people, get ignored. Its no wonder the candidates fixate on issues that matter to specific groups of voters in swing states, like fracking in Pennsylvania This is my 13th visit. or prescription drug benefits in Florida. To this day, people are still arguing that Al Gore was the real winner and debating whether the recount in Florida was accurate the state whose electors propelled Bush to the top. It probably reduces the cost of presidential campaigns by confining television advertising to the battleground states (and spares the rest of us the tedium of endless repetitive ads). Because the Electoral College is based on the structure of state populations and representation in the House, some people have a vote that carries more weight per delegate than others. FiveThirtyEight polls-only forecast have predicted. Getting Rid Of The Electoral College Isn't Easy - Bustle Changing or eliminating the Electoral College can be accomplished only by an amendment to the Constitution, which requires the consent of two-thirds of Congress and three-fourths of the states.