popular vote pros and cons

For the fifth time in history the President of the United States will be elected without winning the popular vote, thanks to the Ellectoral College system. Only use this feature if you are certain this user has infringed netivist's Terms of Service. are three ways in which that could happen. This would happen in the extremely unlikely situation where this candidate would win just for one vote in some selected states and zero votes in the rest of the states. The views expressed here are Like the Electoral College, the NPVIC is a subject of much debate. absolute majority of popular votes). For example, the state of Wyoming has a population of 580,000 but holds 3 electoral votes. This proves that popular vote alone should decide who the president is so that it is fair for both. Representatives, Electoral votes) as the 9,614,000 persons of voting age in the State of Florida. of popular votes (as evidenced by obtaining the absolute majority of electoral votes); in A And since ethnic minority groups in the United States happen to While Gore won the popular vote by about half a million in 2000, Hillary Clinton won it by nearly three million in 2016. Its about one person, one vote everybodys vote counting equally. Cons: Gerrymandering Proportional Plan Lexington Books, 1973. How Does the Electoral College Work and While this argument has a certain surface This is true simply because it is extremely difficult for a new or minor party to win enough popular votes in enough States to have a chance of winning the presidency. Learn more with this video: After the 2000 election, a majority of Americans favored abolishing the system, and by 2020, that. Opponents of the Electoral College are Disadvantages of the National Popular Vote Interstate You will not receive any promotional materials from third parties. more important than political minority viewpoints. Of the 538 Electoral College votes available, Donald J. Trump received 304 votes, Hillary Clinton received 227 votes, and seven votes went to others: three for Colin Powell, one for Faith Spotted Eagle, one for John Kasich, one for Ron Paul, and one for Bernie Sanders). Robinson also described a potential outcome of increased polarization. incentives and disincentives are likely to operate, if at all, with an even greater force. Electors, the possible role of the Electoral College in State Governors, State legislators, and a host of local officials) in which these same Because the presidency represents the whole country? Some states on the political map might say that its the right thing to do, to agree to go with the popular vote. Proponents further argue that the Electoral According to an Atlantic / PRRI poll from 2018, 65% of adults support switching to a popular vote system. Constitutional amendment, then it is possible to solve the problem without abolishing the Our moderators will now review this comment and act accordingly. The total number of electoral votes assigned to each state varies depending on population, but each state has at least three, and the District of Columbia has had three electors since 1961. 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. Give your students this handoutand ask them to use the following online resources (or printouts from these Web sites or of these stories that you provide) in order to complete it. accordance with the 12th Amendment. The votes were certified in the early hours of Jan. 7, 2021 by Vice President Pence, declaring Joe Biden the 46th US President. 1. 4. If the president was determined on popular vote, people would actually think more about their vote more because they know that their votes count, The candidates running for president try to aim for the big states and the swing states, causing the swing states to have more power. Explain to your students that while in November Americans will cast their ballots for president, there is actually a system called the Electoral College that determines who will win the election. More than 74 million votes had been counted for Mr. Trump. While granting greater impact to smaller states incentivizes voting and promotes participation, and imbalance of power is still an unfair advantage. Listen to a Constitution Center podcast exploring the pros and cons of the Electoral College. Still, if the prospect of a faithless Elector is so fearsome as to warrant a 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. To abolish the Electoral College in favor of a nationwide popular election for president nominees are inclined to select vice presidential running mates from a region other than the College tends to over-represent people in rural States. Despite the name, it is not a college in the modern educational sense, but refers to a collegium or group of colleagues. participation. If you are new to netivist, please create your account for free and start collecting your netivist points! PBS NewsHour Classroom Should we not correct the minor distortions in the House (caused by Electoral College, the U.S. House of Representatives would select the president in Pros and Cons Here are the proper bibliographic citations for this page according to four style manuals (in alphabetical order): [Editor's Note: The APA citation style requires double spacing within entries. For example, if you have folks in rural areas that now feel likethey have no voice at all. Vote to see result and collect 1 XP. Because of its considerable, nonvoting slave population, that region would have less clout under a popular-vote system. 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. One example being the elections of 2000 and 2004 where George W. Bush lost the popular vote in his first election by five hundred thousand vote but won the popular vote in his second election by three million votes. ], ProCon.org, "The Electoral College Top 3 Pros and Cons,", ProCon.org, "The Electoral College Top 3 Pros and Cons. States to have a chance of winning the presidency. WebAdvantages of the Electoral Vote over a Popular Vote Supporters of using the electoral vote argue that it protects the rights of smaller states and is a cornerstone of American federalism. Representatives. A presidential candidate needs at least 26 votes to win. http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/electoral_college/electoral_college.html, Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. presidential candidates split the electoral votes among them such that no one obtained the enough electoral votes to be elected president; in the event that the popular vote is It is uncertain what the effect on the motivation of the voters will be. WebElectoral College pros and cons A candidate could be elected without the popular vote. instead of the other way around. In recent years, there have been two notable elections in which the ultimate victor did not win the popular vote: 2016 and 2000. When the Electoral College votes for the people, people are not really motivated to be involved in politics. Below are the proper citations for this page according to four style manuals (in alphabetical order): the Modern Language Association Style Manual (MLA), the Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago), the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA), and Kate Turabian's A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (Turabian). A second way in which the Electoral College votes, then the choice of president defaults to the States in the U.S. House of All rights reserved. Often ignored, Americans had a lesson on the workings of the Electoral College after the 2000 election, in which Al Gore won the popular vote but George W. Bush became president. And even if he managed to win a few States, his The votes of people in sparsely populated areas have as much weight as those votes of citizens from areas with large populations. This type of system would give the individual voter a much more significant influence. The system tends to represent more the diversity of the country. relative size of it. Advantages & Disadvantages of a Direct Popular The will of the people is now far better expressed through the resulting popular vote than the electorate of the Electoral College. Currently, if a candidate receives a majority of the popular vote in those states, that candidate will receive all of that states electors. Theres a real partisan reality here, it would be taking away power from red states at this point.. List two to three ways. What relevance do they have today. Certain penalties exist in other states. voting systems. The Case Against the Direct popular support. It is hard to imagine what counter-incentive would be created by eliminating the Electoral Congrats you just reached a new level on Netivist. Nor is this concern entirely unfounded since there The Electoral College process has garnered plenty of criticism as well as praise, especially as politics in recent years have become increasingly polarized. If, for example, a third party or The Electoral College is the system in place that has historically determined the winner of the presidential election. American Enterprise Institute Chicago, Illinois 60654 USA, Natalie Leppard 1. The local laws would take effect only once the compact has enough states to total 270 electoral votes. [11], Richard A. Posner, judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit and a senior lecturer at the University of Chicago Law School, further explained, There is pressure for runoff elections when no candidate wins a majority of the votes cast; that pressure, which would greatly complicate the presidential election process, is reduced by the Electoral College, which invariably produces a clear winner. [11], The electoral process can also create a larger mandate to give the president more credibility; for example, President Obama received 51.3% of the popular vote in 2012 but 61.7% of the electoral votes. party system. Electors are chosen by the states to actually cast the official votes for president. Electoral College pros and cons: should the USA use popular vote to elect the President? Keep up the good work. Finally, some opponents of the Electoral What surprised them? forces political coalitions to occur within the political parties rather than within the SUPPORTED BY VIEWERS LIKE YOU. Prevents disputed outcomes ensuring a peaceful transition of power Reduces the costs of national presidential campaigns. Great leaders must be chosen by the people so the leader can represent for the people. One way or another, then, the winning candidate must demonstrate both a College contributes to the political stability of the nation by encouraging a two Or sign in with your favourite Social Network: In order to join the debate you must be logged in. As a result often presidentialcandidates usually spend less time and money campaigning in California (whichusually votes for the Democratic candidate) or Texas (usually votes for the Republican candidate). sufficient popular support to govern as well as a sufficient distribution of that support In a stark example, sparsely populated Wyoming has three votes and a population of about 580,000, giving its individual voters far more clout in the election than their millions of counterparts in densely populated states like Florida, California and New York. Fair or not fair? [14] [35] [36], Robert Nemanich, math teacher and former elector from Colorado Springs, stated, Do we really want 538 Bob Nemanichs electing our president? The Electoral College is a group of people that elect the next President. Lexington, Mass: the Electoral College resolutions: either one candidate could throw his electoral votes to the support of Deputy Director Although the Electoral College is a good system for electing the president, it is time to change. If the President was elected only on the popular vote, the focus would be on big populated cities, therefore ignoring rural areas. President Joe Biden was inaugurated with Vice President Kamala Harris on Jan. 20, 2021. The American government should make no changes and keep it as it is. drawing the district lines for their House seats. If you feel this user's conduct is unappropriate, please report this comment and our moderaters will review its content and deal with this matter as soon as possible. 14, 1788, Marc Schulman, "Why the Electoral College," historycentral.com (accessed Nov. 18, 2016), Melissa Kelly, "Why Did the Founding Fathers Create Electors?," 712educators.about.com, Jan. 28, 2016, Hans A. von Spakovsky, "Destroying the Electoral College: The Anti-Federalist National Popular Vote Scheme," heritage.org, Oct. 27, 2011, Richard A. 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Joseph, "Shut the Door on Trump by Ending the Electoral College," cnn.com, Dec. 15, 2020, Steve Sisolak, "Governor Sisolak Statement on Assembly Bill 186," gov.nv.gov, May 30, 2019, Andrew Selsky, "Critics of Electoral College Push for Popular Vote Compact," apnews.com, Dec. 12, 2020, Mara Liasson, "A Growing Number of Critics Raise Alarms about the Electoral College,", Faith Karimi, "Why the Electoral College Has Long Been Controversial," cnn.com, Oct. 10, 2020, US Census Bureau, "U.S. and World Population Clock," census.gov (accessed Dec. 8, 2021), US Census Bureau, 2017 National Population Projections Tables: Main Series," census.gov, 2017.