Electoral College: An Essential Component of our Democracy
The right to vote is fundamental to our democracy. For the last 100 years, the presidential candidate who won the most popular votes won the election, but the last election was different. [i] The candidate who won the presidency in the 2000 presidential election, George W. Bush, actually received fewer popular votes than the losing candidate, Al Gore. This raises some interesting questions: is the process by which Americans currently elect presidents democratic? If all Americans are equal, should not one American equal one vote? Does the Electoral College work, even though it disproportionably represents the votes of some Americans, or should we switch to a direct voting system?
There is some support for keeping the current system. One benefit is that generally, the Electoral College adds legitimacy to the winner of the popular vote by exaggerating the margin of the victory. For example, the Electoral College made it look as if John F. Kennedy was the clear winner of the 1960 presidential election. He received 303 electoral votes, while his opponent, Richard Nixon, received only 219 electoral votes.i The popular vote, on the other hand, was much closer: John F. Kennedy received 49.72% of the popular vote, while Richard Nixon received 49.55% of the popular vote.[ii] However, the winner of the most popular votes is not always the winner of the Electoral College. There have been four cases, one being the last election, where the winner of the most popular votes lost the presidency.
Another conceivable benefit of the Electoral College is that it can lessen the negative effects of third-party candidates who have no chance of winning. In order to win the presidency...
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...h a greater share of the population. To argue that the Electoral College is undemocratic or not American is not far from arguing that the distribution of power in our nation's legislature is undemocratic and needs reform. The Electoral College is nothing more than a combination of two essential components of our democracy. The Electoral College strikes a delicate balance between the rights of the minority and the majority so that all voices are heard.
[i] Tight election puts Electoral College under microscope
http://www.cnn.com/2000/ALLPOLITICS/stories/11/13/electoral.college/index.html
[ii] 1960 Election Results
http://h0040055bf148.ne.mediaone.net/~dave/POL/pe1960.html
[iii] 1992 Election Results/1996 Election Results
http://h0040055bf148.ne.mediaone.net/~dave/POL/pe1992.html
http://h0040055bf148.ne.mediaone.net/~dave/POL/pe1996.html
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.
Through these almost 2 and a half centuries since the beginning of the Electoral College there has been a large change in population. Since then, the U.S. has grown from a mere 4 million to a looming number of around 300 million people. It is because of this population increase that the Electoral College has become obsolete and is beginning to fail at its duties. Alexander Hamilton was a Federalist and a supporter of the Electoral College who was quoted as saying “It was also desirable to afford as little opportunity as possible to tumult and disorder/ promise an effectual security against this mischief” (Document #1). The College would have prevented tumult and disorder for
The Electoral College system should be scrapped and be replaced with popular vote because it is unfair. By abolishing the Electoral College and replacing it with popular vote, it would represent citizens equally, it would allow citizens to elect their president just as they elect their governors and senators, and it would motivate and encourage citizens to participate in voting.
The United States of America is often touted as the guiding beacon of democracy for the entirety of the modern world. In spite of this tremendous responsibility the political system of the United States retains some aspects which upon examination appear to be significantly undemocratic. Perhaps the most perplexing and oft misunderstood of these establishments is the process of electing the president and the institution known as the Electoral College. The puzzle of the Electoral College presents the American people with a unique conundrum as the mark of any true democracy is the citizens’ ability to elect their own ruling officials. Unfortunately, the Electoral College system dilutes this essential capacity by introducing an election by
Voting is at the center of every democratic system. In america, it is the system in which a president is elected into office, and people express their opinion. Many people walk into the voting booth with the thought that every vote counts, and that their vote might be the one that matters above all else. But in reality, America’s voting system is old and flawed in many ways. Electoral College is a commonly used term on the topic of elections but few people actually know how it works.
In America, voting for the President is a privilege and a lie. Many Americans think when they go to the polls in November, they are voting for the President of the United States; but really, they are voting for a group of electors who have pledged to support a nominee for the President. The Founding Fathers were concerned that presidents would always come from a populous state and wondered whether the public would have the knowledge of various candidates necessary to make a wise selection. They did not have access to technology like the internet or smart phones as we do. In most states, as the result of the election, the state awards all its electors to the winning candidate (Belenky 1308). A Presidential a candidate must win 270 Electoral
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.
This process of electing a president is unjust and is not based off of the people’s views. In Document D the chart provided illustrates how some of the electoral votes favor some states over others; for example the twelve states listed and the district of Columbia seem to have a bigger say in the presidential election process than the citizens of Illinois. This itself is unfair because Illinois deserves to have an accurate representation of their votes, the same as other states do. This shows that the Electoral College undercuts the principle of one person, one vote, and therefore violates political equality. “It is not a neutral counting device... it favors some citizens over others, depending solely upon the state in which voters cast their votes for president” (Document D). Political equality means all citizens are equal and it also allows citizens to partake in state affairs, including the right to vote and the right to challenge elections. However the Electoral College violates the principle of this for the fact that it weighs some citizens’ votes more heavily than others (video). Generally it makes no sense for the people to vote if they’re not even counted, and either way it violates their rights.
In the United States we are all guaranteed one vote per person. Everyone has an equal voice in electing the people that serve in the government. Every four years during the month of November citizens of America go to the polls to vote for a president and vice-president of the United States. Am I right? Not really. They actually vote for electors that then vote for our president. It makes me wonder, "Are we a democracy?" Having the Electoral College defeats its purpose. I oppose the electoral college for these three reasons, in election 2000 the president that lost the popular vote actually won, everyone's vote doesn't really count, plus the electoral college has disrupted elections fifteen times!
The Electoral College should be abolished because the United States today is much more populous and very different than when the founders wrote the Constitution more than two centuries ago (Raasch 1)...
First of all, it is important to address that Milton’s Paradise Lost still contains many elements that define it as a member of the epic genre. It follows the story of a hero (or anti-hero), it involves warfare and elements of the
This has has always been a big thing for the United States, has it’s people are bringing in a new person who would eventually lead their country into a good path. When it comes to actually doing the rough work like voting for a new President, that would be an entirely different story. In a chart from Document G, there are 4 past elections listed that compares the popular votes to the electoral votes. In the 2000 election, George W. Bush won by 271 electoral votes, while Gore won by 266 electoral votes. This may seem reasonable for Bush to be the president, but when it comes to the popular vote, although, Gore had highest amount of popular votes than Bush did. So why did Bush win instead? This is one of the main reasons why the Electoral College should be abolished. If the Electoral College stays then the people will not be able to choose the right person for the right job. So this shows how it can cause so many people to be frustrated with the Electoral College, which does not really help the country at all, in terms of the choosing a new
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.
...ite the various differences discussed above, one similitude between the two is that their stories all end in a negative if not tragic tone. In each of the Fitzgerald stories the main character loses what he desires and dreams of obtaining. Not only does this happen to Gatsby, but he is also tragically murdered in a case of mistaken identity. Hemingway's endings also force the reader to sympathize if not pity the characters whether it be the boy's naïvely innocent belief of self-immortality, Nick's and Marjorie's break up, Krebs' emotionally dead stoicism, or the loneliness of the old waiter.