The Electoral College Should Be Revised
As citizens of the United State of America, one of our most important rights is that of which to vote. By voting, the general population has a say in who its leaders are. Votes for local, state, and even federal representatives directly reflect who the constituents want in office. However, America’s highest office is not elected by a vote of the people. Instead we use a confusing and outdated system called the Electoral College. Our president is not elected by the people, but by 538 electors who can legally vote for whomever they choose. Several times in our nations history an elector has voted against the people’s will. Three presidents have been elected into office by the electoral college and not had the majority support of the nation. This phenomenon may very well happen again this year. This system needs to be changed. The highest office in our great nation needs to be elected by the people he/she is representing.
The electoral college was developed by our founding fathers as a compromise between a president elected by Congress and one elected by the popular vote of the people. They feared that if the president was elected by Congress, he/she may feel some obligation to it. They also felt that the American people were not well enough informed and mature enough to elect their own leader. They finally decided on an Electoral College that today is made up of 538 electors from all 50 state and the District of Columbia. Each state is allotted a number of electors equal to its number of Representatives and Senators in Washington. The District of Columbia has a number of electors equal to that of the least populated state. As an example, California, our nation’s most populated state, h...
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...t. This government is made of the people, for the people, and by the people. We need to have the ability to choose our own leader without the possibility of that decision getting manipulated.
Sources Cited:
Tom Curtis, "Making Sense of the Electoral College." [Internet, www], http://www.msnbc.com. [viewed Nov. 6, 2000]
"Frequently Asked Questions on the Electoral College." Prepared by The Office of the Federal Register. [Internet, www], http://www.nara.gov. [viewed Nov. 6, 2000]
"Electoral College." 2000 United Republican Network. [Internet, www], http://united.republican .com. [viewed Nov. 6, 2000]
Eric Wikman, "The Electoral College: Then, Now, and Tomorrow." [Internet, www], http://www.wickman.com. [viewed Nov. 6, 2000]
Judy Cresanta, "The Electoral College: Crisis Avoided." [Internet, www], http://www.npri.com. [viewed Nov. 6, 2000]
Well, It is clear that a system of delegation such as the Electoral College is needed. However, perhaps the Electoral College isn’t the way to go. Or maybe the Electoral College could be improved upon. It certainly has its problems but ultimately the U.S is better off with it. It allows for the minority interests to be herd. It contributes to the more even cohesiveness of the country by utilizing a distribution of popular support to be elected president. The biggest problem is that Americans think that issues have simple answers such as “Should we keep the electoral college?” When in reality, it is almost never a simple yes or no question. That is one of the reasons the Electoral College exists. It will continue to be needed until the average American can understand these issues, get involved, and make reasonable choices about its
The United States is a privileged country with freedoms and opportunities many countries strive to achieve. People come into the United States in hopes to obtain these rights and make a better life for themselves; they strive to achieve “The American Dream.” Citizens are given the chance to vote, speak their mind, and live according to their desires without prejudice. However, the same government that promises hope has flaws that frustrate the American people; the Electoral College is one topic of debate. Many feel this system is a safe way to regulate who leads the country, while others feel that issues should be left to popular vote.
Kimberling, William C. “The Electoral College.” Federal Election Commission, May 1992. Web. 13 March 2012.
Neale, Thomas H., CRS Web. CRS Report For Congress. The Electoral College: How It Works in Contemporary Presidential Elections. 28 September, 2004. http://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/36762.pdf
As the United States of America gets older, so does the presidential election voting system. The argument to change this method of voting has been becoming more and more popular as the years go on. It has been said that the Framers of the Constitution came up with this method because of the bad transportation, communication, and they feared the public’s intelligence was not suitable for choosing the President of the United States. Others say that the Framers made this method because they feared that the public did not receive sufficient information about candidates outside of their state to make such a decision based on direct popular vote. My research on this controversial issue of politics will look into the factors into why the Electoral College exists and if it is possibly outdated for today’s society. It will look into the pros and cons of this voting system, and it will explore the alternative methods of voting such as the Direct Popular vote. Many scholarly authors have gathered research to prove that this voting system is outdated and it does not accurately represent the national popular will. Many U.S. citizens value their vote because they only get one to cast towards the candidate of their choice in the presidential election. Based on the Electoral College system their vote may possibly not be represented. Because of today’s society in the U.S. the Electoral College should be abolished because it is not necessary to use a middle-man to choose our president for us. It is a vote by the people, all of us having one voice, one vote.
The Founders built certain protections for individual rights into this country's founding documents. The United States Constitution was one such document. In particular, such protections guard Americans who hold minority viewpoints from those who side with the majority. For example, the First Amendment protects the right of free speech to ensure that people who hold unpopular views have just as much freedom to express those views as do people who tend to agree with the majority. The United States Constitution, therefore, was intended to protect the individual rights of Americans from a tyrannical government and majority. However, today, the Electoral College does not represent the vibrant democracy into which the United States has grown.
Since the fiasco that was the Presidential Election in the year 2000, many Americans have been calling for a reform of the Electoral College. Most of these people were Gore supporters; disillusioned by the fact that Bush won the office of the President while, in fact, he lost the popular vote. The American people did not elect George W. Bush; the Electoral College did.
Beginning at the time the Electoral College was put into place, many debated over its pros and cons. As time has gone on, more and more people have begun to show support for a change in the system (Saad 2013). After George W. Bush defeated AL Gore in the 2000 election by losing popular vote, but winning the college, leading to a “legal recount contest”, many began to question the fairness of the college (Cohen, 2010). This marked the “third time in the nation’s history” the less popular candidate has taken office (Longley). However, the Electoral College should remain in place because it ensures the continuation of a Representative Democracy, maintains a two party system, and because currently no plausible plan has been produced as a means of replacement.
"Sexual harassment is a type of sex discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Unwelcome sexual advances, demands for sexual favors and other verbal or physical behavior of a sexual nature is inappropriate behavior when the behavior unequivocally or verifiably influences an individual’s employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual’s work performance or creates a scary, antagonistic or hostile workplace (Noe, 2011).” " Sexual harassment can be the point at which somebody feels uncomfortable or irritated in a sexual manner, for instance, this could be as a remark, joke, look, or motion. There are two noteworthy sorts of sexual harassment: Quid pro quo which is the point at which a man is punished for dismissing
Roberts, Barry S. and Richard A. Mann. ?Sexual Harassment in the Workplace: A Primer.? n.pag. On-line. Internet. 5 Dec 2000. Available WWW:
Before looking at the definitions of both situations, it’s important to note that the law applies to all genders, be it male/female, female/female, or male/male. Anyone can be a victim of sexual harassment no matter their sex. Statistics show that “16% of claims are filed by males.” (Ethics) The anxiety and frustration experienced by victims can impact their quality of life not to mention the quality of their work “The harasser can be the employee 's supervisor, manager, customer, coworker, supplier, peer, or vendor. Any individual, who is connected to the employee 's work environment, can be accused of sexual harassment.” (Heathfield) The victim in a sexual harassment situation isn’t always alone. Others who witness or overhear a conversation can also take
Harassment of a sexual nature, typically in the workplace or other setting where raising objections or refusing may have negative consequences is considered sexual harassment. In American employment law, it is any unwelcome sexual advance on the job that creates intimidation in the workplace. Sexual harassment is considered a form of illegal discrimination. Unfortunately, the definition of sexual harassment is very controversial; it is truly based on what ones personal opinion is. Typical sexual harassment behavior usually includes unwanted touching of a co-worker, lewd comments, talk about gender superiority, or sexual jokes (Sandler, 1997).
The U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission describes sexual harassment as a form of gender discrimination that is in violation of the Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Undesirable sexual advances, request for sexual favors, and further verbal and physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes sexual harassment, when compliance to or refusal of this behavior explicitly or implicitly affects an individual employment (EEOC).
.What does sexual harassment really means? Many people cannot define the exactly sexual harassment means. According Title VII of the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 it defined as, " (Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or
Beauty pageants have long been a form of entertainment, exhibiting beautiful women with ideal bodies competing with their talent and their looks. Many pageant moms involve their daughters in children’s pageants to help them improve their social skills, exercise their talents, and boost their self-esteem. Although the pageants may seem like harmless competition with benefits, research shows that they may be doing the young beauty queens more harm than good. “...the girls are receiving conflicting messages: In order to win, the girls must show a unique personality, but they must also act and dress in a hyper feminine manner and conform to the pageant world 's ideal standard of beauty and narrow set of conventions.” (University of Kansas,