Thesis statement
Many United States citizens consider the Electoral College an archaic institution, due to the belief that the people can make an informed decision regarding the selection of a Presidential candidate, does not allow a direct election based on individual informed decision-making, and the Electoral College does not have provisions to block Electors from voting against the people’s popular vote.
Support
Article II, Section I of the United States Constitution and the 12th Amendment embodies the processes of electing the President of the United States. The U.S. Constitution states, “Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and Representatives
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Initially, the average citizen had little opportunity or means to understand the intricacies and importance of selecting a Presidential candidate, which resulted in appointed Electors that had their state’s citizen’s interests at heart. Technology and education, such as radio, television, newspapers, media, internet, and intellectual acuity has expanded, thus diminishing the need for chosen Electors to make informed decisions for citizens (Hardaway, 2012). Trusting citizens to make an informed decision regarding whom should be President would ensure greater voting turnout with the knowledge that their vote would matter and safeguard that the President is elected by majority …show more content…
Currently, the Electoral College is calculated at 538 Electors, consisting of 100 Senators, 435 Representatives, and 3 Electors from the District of Columbia, which constitutes Presidential candidates requiring 270 Electoral College votes to be considered majority rule (NARA, n.d.). The winner-take-all system of the Electoral College should reflect the popular vote of the citizen’s, but electoral votes can supersede the popular vote, for example the Presidential election in 2000 between George W. Bush and Al Gore. Negative light was shone on the Electoral College, due to the popular vote belonging to Al Gore but the Electoral College votes going to George W. Bush, thus making him President. This distorts the citizen’s true preference and betrays the voice of the
The Electoral College vs. Popular Vote The United States is a privileged country with freedoms and opportunities many countries strive to achieve. People come into the United States in hopes of obtaining these rights and 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.
Electoral College is Wrong The Electoral College is the name given to a group of electors who are nominated by political activists and party members within the states. The electoral college really isn't necessary and should be abolished. There are numerous reasons why this is so important. With the Electoral College in effect, third parties don't have a chance to become the president, which isn't fair.
2016 is slowly approaching as 2015 comes to an end and thus ushers in a new president at the end of the year! The 2016 election will be held on November 8th, 2016 and will be the 58th quadrennial presidential election. With each presidential election comes the controversy on the basis of how they were elected. Primarily, the public’s opinion on the Electoral College and how it is the actual determining factor, in who is chosen for the presidency. The problems that may spring forward will be what the Electoral College actually is and how it works, why the Founding Fathers created the Electoral College, major criticisms on the Electoral College, and why it should be abolished.
The Electoral College has been the favored method by the United States to elect the president for many years. When the College was first created in 1787 it was seen as an efficient and reliable way to vote the president into office. It has been more than 2 centuries since this method of electing was chosen and many things have changed in U.S. society. The Electoral College is failing to keep up with these advancements in society and a new method must be chosen soon.
Every four years, the citizens of America migrate to their respective polling locations and cast their vote. On this important day, the second Tuesday of November, the next President of the United States is elected. The election race for United States presidential candidates undergo a political marathon, negotiating primaries, party conventions and an electoral college system along the way. The electoral college is one of the main aspect of a presidential election. The Electoral College is made up of electors in each state, who represent the states popular vote. Each presidential party or candidate designates a group of electors in each state, equal to the States electoral votes, who are considered to be loyal to that candidate, to each State’s
Due to the discrepancy between the winner of the popular vote and the winner of the electoral college in the most recent election, there has been a lot of talk about eliminating the electoral college and moving to a direct popular vote. While many people argue for this shift, usually with little knowledge of what a popular vote election would look like, there are also many citizens who are opposed to the idea. In our polarized political climate, this fact is not surprising. Those who support the electoral college defend it by claiming that it is not only constitutional, but it also represents the whole county, and makes for a more certain, legitimate election process.
The Electoral College was created by the framers at the Constitutional Convention in 1787. They believe that it wasn’t a good idea for the people to elect the president directly because they did not trust that voters would have enough information to make a good choice. The Electoral College basically chooses who the next president will be since it takes away our freedom to vote. The Electoral College should be abolished because it’s undemocratic, the small states are overrepresented, and it hurts third parties. The United States of America is a democratic country that is characterized by the equality of rights and privileges.
The American Society grants every citizen of legal age to vote in elections. The Electoral College System provides electoral votes to candidates despite losing popular votes. The Electoral College System is unfair as candidates who do not win popular vote can still win a presidential election. This system is unfair as it grants 538 electors to become the voice of 319 million people.
The Electoral College Should Be Abolished Many years after the United States was founded, the Constitutional Convention met to decide how the new nation would govern itself; they later came to settle on the Electoral College. The Electoral College is a system in which the president and vice president are chosen indirectly. In general, the delegates did not believe that a direct popular vote was acceptable, however that it should be decided by the US senators and representatives instead. The way in which it works: a candidate must receive a majority of the electoral votes to be officially declared president. If no candidate obtains a majority, the US Representatives selects the president from the top three contenders; this means each state receives
When the Constitution was written, the typical voter had few opportunities to learn about the presidential candidates, so the job of choosing the President was given to the Electoral College: Electors, who were appointed by their states, were better educated than average citizens, who were not thought capable of making an informed
Beginning in America in 1787, the Electoral College was originally created during the Constitutional Convention to help make a fair way for the president to be elected without giving too much power to either the national government or individual states. Over the years, the Electoral College has undergone a few changes in attempt to make it more fair, but there is still much debate about whether or not the Electoral College is the most effective way to elect a president. Some people believe that the Electoral College does an excellent job of creating an equal distribution of votes across all ethnicities and social classes of America. In contrast, others think that the Electoral College does not give an accurate portrayal of the popular opinion of Americans, believing that the Electoral College is no longer necessary for the election process in our society. The issue of whether or not the Electoral College should be a part of our government is important to our society, because it has had a dramatic effect on who is elected as president. Several times in American history a potential presidential candidate has obtained the presidential office only because of the Electoral College, despite the fact that they lost the popular vote. Therefore, the Electoral College should be removed from the government and replaced with an election system based on the popular vote.
The Electoral College is a system where the President is directly elected. This process has been used in many past elections as well as the current 2016 election. This process also helps narrow down the large numbers that were made by the popular votes, into a smaller number that is easier to work with for electing the President. Some states use a system called “winner-takes-all”, which is another system that is connected with the Electoral College. This allows a candidate with the most electoral votes, to get the rest of the votes that the state provides. This has made it very unfair to many people, because the Electoral College has the most advantage for candidates. The Electoral College is a very unfair system that causes any candidate to win easily if he or she has the highest votes, and makes the number of voters
Happening on multiple occasions, the Electoral College has elected a President that did not win the popular vote. Called a “faithless electors”, this happens when an elector doesn’t follow the guidelines provided by the general election (Williams 2). The election of a “minority” President has created controversy whether the Electoral College should be abolished or not. People in favor of the Electoral College state that it requires popular support throughout the states to be elected President, and it protects the smaller states’ interests for the candidates. Those in favor also say that the Electoral College supports and stabilizes a two-party system and maintains the United States’ system of representation (Williams 3). While some people are in favor of the Electoral College, there are people that protest against it. These people say that the Electoral College can lessen the voter turnout, put votes with “faithless electors”, and the Electoral College might not show what the citizens want based on popular vote. Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins, from League of Women Voters, is a protester of the Electoral College and said, “The Electoral College, a curious vestige of the eighteenth century, violates the principle of one person, one vote. The time has come to abolish it.” Jefferson-Jenkins goes on to state that the Electoral College is becoming outdated with the technology advancements of
The Electoral College plays a critical role in the election of the President of the United States of America. First introduced in 1787, the founding fathers implemented this system as a way to ensure a more efficient voting process (Soros). During this time the Electoral College did serve a noble purpose and in fact, was the most efficient way of voting in a time when mass transportation and technology did not exist. By participating in this process, townships were able to send a representative to cast a collective vote for that area. The modern Electoral College still operates in a similar fashion and yet, fails to serve a modern-day purpose. It challenges the democratic principles which the United States was founded on and may even operate illegally. Today, “forty-eight of the fifty states appoint (their) electors through a "winner take all" method of election” which is “not simply undemocratic, but potentially illegal...
The United States of America is a representative republic. In order to sustain a representative republic, it requires an actively engaged and informed participation from its citizens. The U.S Electoral College is a process in which the president of the United States is chosen. The founders escaped a tyrannical government, installing this system to prevent corruption, and more of a federalist system. This system balances the national governments power, and the states’ power. This system varies state by state. Generally speaking, the people who make up the electoral college is made up by people who are elected by each of the state’s legislature. This federalist system proves that voters cannot simply vote for their favorable presidential candidate; they must also vote in their local elections.