The House of Representatives picked Adams over Andrew Jackson, who won the popular vote but only a plurality of the Electoral College. The current Presidential election process uses the Electoral College system. ], ProCon.org, "The Electoral College Top 3 Pros and Cons,", ProCon.org, "The Electoral College Top 3 Pros and Cons. United States, for example, the House of Representatives was designed to represent the Thus, there is an incentive for Selected students then present to the class as a whole. Vote to see result and collect 1 XP. No attention is paid to the smaller states because of the low electoral number, which doesnt really help the candidate win a lot. Currently, if a candidate receives a majority of the popular vote in those states, that candidate will receive all of that states electors. If so, how? Ultimately, they decided that when electing an executive, the Electoral College system would be implemented. 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. Currently, Republicans control 26 state delegations, while Democrats control 22. If the popular vote was the only factor towards presidential election, what would be the incentive for rural areas and states to vote knowing the issues and opinions nearest to them wont be heard? posited Patrick Graham, history and economics teacher in the Upper Schools. the risk of so-called "faithless" Nor is this concern entirely unfounded since there Because the presidency represents the whole country? In other words, such a system The Electoral College is the voting system the United States has adopted to choose the president, the individual who runs the country. national popular majority. 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. I AM AN ELECTED JUDGE. Cleveland ran again four years later and won back the White House. Is it fair? University of Colorado Boulder [2], The Electoral College was established in 1788 by Article II of the US Constitution, which also established the executive branch of the US government, and was revised by the Twelfth Amendment (ratified June 15, 1804), the Fourteenth Amendment (ratified July 1868), and the Twenty-Third Amendment (ratified Mar. Opponents say would disadvantage low-income and blue collar workers. As of 2020, it has garnered 196 (73% of the requirement) electoral votes and has been adopted by 15 states and the District of Columbia. Their reasoning is that in a formal every incentive to absorb minor party movements in their continual attempt to win popular Cons: Can disregard the will of the majority. College contributes to the political stability of the nation by encouraging a two appointments are great but usually only represent the agenda of the one Indeed, they point out that the Electoral College system is designed to Students may work individually or in small groups. Zeidenstein, Harvey G. Direct Election of the President. represent each State's choice for the presidency (with the number of each State's Such a unifying mechanism seems especially prudent in A second way in which a minority president [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. Pros: No winner-take all. distributed across the States. There are pros and cons to both systems. (Until the ratification of the 12th Amendment in 1804, the candidate with the second-highest number of electoral votes became vice president.). Faithless Electors have never changed the outcome of an Robinson stated, It depends on the outcome [of the election]. Should that happen today, there are two possible Because of how the system is set up, it is possible for one candidate to win the popular vote and another to win the electoral vote. Equality: With National Popular Vote, all votes are worth exactly the same and everybodys voice matters. Representative Democracy Washington: Brookings Institution, To abolish the Electoral College in favor of a nationwide popular election for president 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. You will not receive any promotional materials from third parties. 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. We will help you do it! It is hard to imagine what counter-incentive would be created by eliminating the Electoral the Electoral College The views expressed here are The race between the two candidates is the first one to 270 electors because this is almost half of the total. States can design their own mechanism -- without federal involvement -- for choosing their electors. Menu burger Close thin Facebook Twitter Google plus Linked in Reddit Email arrow-right-sm arrow-right Loading Home Buying Calculators view of the severe regional problems that have typically plagued geographically large Analyze and debate the pros and cons of the Electoral College system. Like the Electoral College, the NPVIC is a subject of much debate. WebIn five elections in US history1824, 1876, 1888, 2000, and 2016candidates who won the popular vote did not win the presidency because they failed to gain a majority of electoral votes. Bickel, Alexander M. Reform and Continuity. First, the people would vote for electors, who then would cast an official ballot. Once more, the United States President and Vice President were elected by an indirect vote system, known as Ellectoral College. Please consider making a small donation today. is extremely difficult for a new or minor party to win enough popular votes in enough 68 (The Mode of Electing the President)," congress.gov, Mar. What can your students conclude? Consider the American Bar Associations fact check on whether the Electoral College can be abolished. presidential candidates well out of proportion to their number. It was even a talking point among 2020 Democratic presidential candidates. Election of the President. In addition to protecting the presidency from impassioned but transitory third party contributes to the cohesiveness of the country The New York Times called the last two states on its map on Nov. 13: Georgias 16 electoral votes for Mr. Biden and North Carolinas 15 for Mr. Trump. electoral votes required to elect a president. [25], On Monday Dec. 19, 2016, the electors in each state met to vote for President and Vice President of the United States. [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. 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. In this lesson, students will learn about the Electoral College how it works in a presidential election and why it was created and consider whether it needs to be reformed. The direct consequence of using an Electoral College and a winner-take-all basis in most states is that a presidential candidate can be elected to the office without winning the popular vote, as it happened in the previous four occasions, more recently in 2000 when George W. Bush defeated Al Gore. The Electoral College is defined as a body of people representing the states of the US, who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president. Since 1787 the Electoral College has been the system for voting in the United States, but with our nation ever more changing and growing it, Several years after the United States came to be, the Constitutional Convention met to determine how the new nation should govern itself. "The Electoral College Top 3 Pros and Cons." The same principle applies Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. Washington: National Clearinghouse on Election Administration, Federal Election Commission. Advantages and Disadvantages of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. sufficient popular support to govern as well as a sufficient distribution of that support Some states on the political map might say that its the right thing to do, to agree to go with the popular vote. Some scholars have said they do not wholeheartedly agree with the decision, arguing that it endangers an electors freedom to make decisions they want and that electors are usually picked for their loyalty to a candidate or party. While Gore won the popular vote by about half a million in 2000, Hillary Clinton won it by nearly three million in 2016. Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, 1983. Electoral College Debate: To Keep Election Commission or any division thereof or the Jackson County Board of plurality of votes in at least one State. The pros and cons of the felon voting debate include arguments about the social contract, voting while in prison, and paying debts. 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. Forty-eight states use the winner-take-all method of appointing electors. Chicago, Illinois 60654 USA, Natalie Leppard Students share their findings. The Founders created the Electoral College because they did not trust people enough to allow them to directly elect the president (Lenz & Holman, 2013). Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) board of education is weighing the pros and cons of the district's start time proposal. procon@eb.com, 2022 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. The Electoral College system is the method by which the President of the United States is elected to office. these grounds, why should such an argument be used to abolish the lesser case of the votes in the State wins all the Electoral votes of that State. If enacted, the NPVIC would replace the Electoral College as the official system for electing the president of the United States. to govern. In 2016, for instance, Democrat Hillary Clinton received nearly 2.9 million more votes than Trump in the presidential election, after racking up more lopsided wins in big states like New York and Many people across the nation believe this election system is flawed and unfair. distribution of popular support to be elected president, without such a mechanism, Although the Electoral College may have been a necessary element of the government when it was originally created, the system has since become impractical for todays society. Please try again. BUT FOR THE ELECTION I MAY NEVER BE APPOINTED. With this rule, that means the candidate who also got some votes from that state, ends up getting none. If, for example, a third party or 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. Small states only get 3 electoral votes, when really, their population, for example in Wyoming, is 584, 153. The elected President gets a stronger winning image with the number of electors he gets than the reality of popular vote, which gives him more credibility to rule the country. winner-take-all mechanism whereby the presidential candidate who wins the most popular The existence of the Electoral College precluded calls for recounts or demands for run-off elections. another (before the meeting of the Electors) or else, absent an absolute majority in the But so, as an An ever-increasing amount of Americans long for a presidential election to be determined by the popular vote and not the electoral vote. If that happens in the Electoral College, then the decision goes to the newly seated House of Representatives, with each state voting as a unit. have a majority of over half the State delegations in order to elect their candidate - and With thismethod a state is divided into a number of districts, allocating one of its state-wide electoral votes to each district. Most states use the winner-take-all method, in which all electoral votes are awarded to the winner of the popular vote in that state. The Electoral College is a process, and a system which we have adapted to over the years. Although Al Gore won the popular vote, George W. Bush earned more electoral votes after a contested Florida recount and a Supreme Court decision. How is this possible? 3. In fact, it has so many cons to it that the popular vote alone should elect the president. Floridian's potential vote, then, carried about one third the weight of a potential vote There are currently 538 electors, representing the 50 states and the District of Columbia. 18 Pros and Cons of Popular Vote. debate contributes to the political stability of the nation. The only way that someone would go for something that doesnt support their own political voice is ifcitizens were demanding it and [supporting the compact] is what would get them kicked out or brought into office again [at the next state election], she concluded. The delegates understood that the need for a leader was necessary but still bitterly remembered how Britain abused of its power. Recognizing that conditions of poverty alone do not constitute neglect, some states are providing child care subsidies, affordable housing, home visiting and enhanced primary care. People should have more power to vote for their president to have their vote count towards determining the winner. Some hope to reduce the Electoral Colleges importance without an amendment. Your vote is anonymous. It is because of this "leverage effect" that the presidency, as an institution,