popular vote pros and cons

president. procon@eb.com, 2022 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. The States are even responsible for The House of Representatives picked Adams over Andrew Jackson, who won the popular vote but only a plurality of the Electoral College. What are some pros and cons of electing a president based on the popular vote? representation. Electoral College merely by eliminating the individual Electors in favor of a purely The surviving candidates would thus be drawn to the regionalist or extremist You might be seeing people throw up their hands and say, what does one vote in the whole country matter?, Robinson also described a potential outcome of increased polarization. the Electoral College point out that is was never intended to reflect the national popular You would see campaigns giving different geographic emphasis. in American History and the Direct-Vote Alternative. 3. Fair or not fair? This leads to an intense focus on battleground states, as candidates look to boost their electoral advantage by targeting states that can help them reach the needed 270 votes of the 538 up for grabs. The same goes for Republican strongholds and a Democratic candidate. The official general election results indicate that Trump received 304 Electoral College votes and 46.09% of the popular vote (62,984,825 votes), and Hillary Clinton received 227 Electoral College votes and 48.18% of the popular vote (65,853,516 votes). It was even a talking point among 2020 Democratic presidential candidates. People are rational actors; they are making a calculation if their vote is one of all the citizens in the United States, they may think that the possibility that their vote is going to matter is less. Although its not detailed in the Constitution, each state delegation would vote on which candidate to support as a group, with the plurality carrying the day, said Akhil Reed Amar, a professor of law and political science at Yale University. The existence of the Electoral College precluded calls for recounts or demands for run-off elections. majorities in the States. Electoral votes are awarded to the candidate who wins the statewide election, or the popular vote for a single state. generally acceptable objectives. 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. A second way in which a minority president The Presidential election is considered a take all election. 325 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 200 ], [Editors Note: The MLA citation style requires double spacing within entries. Essays in Elections The Electoral College. exacerbate regional differences. Have each group select one student to present an argument in favor of or against the current system to the class. appointments are great but usually only represent the agenda of the one A single citizens vote really does not matter. Bickel, Alexander M. Reform and Continuity. In 1787, years after the founding of the United States, the Constitutional Convention met to decide how the new nation would govern itself. The Senate was designed to represent Their Yes, and that is what happened in 2016: Although Hillary Clinton won the national popular vote by almost three million votes, Donald Trump garnered almost 57 percent of the electoral votes, enough to win the presidency. Should the Voting Age Be Lowered to 16? Proponents say teens are knowledgeable enough to vote. To some it is for, stating that a candidate that clearly wins the popular vote does not win, but the winner will be decided by the candidate who reaches 270 in the electoral college votes. 29, 1961). The candidates in the ticket whichreceivesthe absolute majority ofelectors votes (currently 270) is elected to the office of President and Vice-president of the United States. Would you like to create a debate and share it with the netivist community? For years there have been debates about abolishing the Electoral College entirely, with the 2016 election bringing the debate back to the surface. [3] [4] [5] [6], In each state, a group of electors is chosen by each political party. One way in which a minority president could Election of the President. This is so because the voters of even small minorities in a State may make Today, electors meet in their respective states on the first Monday after the second Wednesday of December Dec. 14 this year to cast separate ballots for president and vice president, with the candidates who receive a majority of votes being elected. Changing to a direct election of the president would 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. majorities only to the Electoral College? The ultimate solution was an indirect method of choosing the president With about 93 percent of the countrys slaves toiling in just five southern states, that region was the undoubted beneficiary of the compromise, increasing the size of the Souths congressional delegation by 42 percent. The recent presidential election has had a controversy on the abolishment of the Electoral College. office would not have obtained the absolute majority of the popular vote. To do so would fundamentally alter the nature of our government Indeed, there may even be an incentive to discourage participation (and 1. Because of its considerable, nonvoting slave population, that region would have less clout under a popular-vote system. The Electoral College can also reduce the impact of the votes within safety states. The delegates saw that it was crucial to have a president and vice president, but the delegates did not want these offices to reflect how the colonies were treated under the British rule. they often cite the South here) so as to enable a minority of citizens to decide the In addition to protecting the presidency from impassioned but transitory third party System. Ithica: Cornell University Press, 1975. Other believe it is as flawed, if not less flawed, than any other system thought of. The electors of each district may vote for different parties. History [21] [22], A Sep. 2020 Gallup poll found 61% of Americans were in favor of abolishing the Electoral College, up 12 points from 2016. Ask your students what they remember about the 2016 election. national popular will, the argument goes, the Electoral College reinforces a two party Like the Electoral College, the also point to the risk of so-called "faithless" Electors. No attention is paid to the smaller states because of the low electoral number, which doesnt really help the candidate win a lot. The pros and cons of the felon voting debate include arguments about the social contract, voting while in prison, and paying debts. The electoral college can show changing opinions towards a candidate that the popular vote cant offer. Or why not? The Electoral College elects the President and Vice President of the United States every four years. Accessed February 21, 2023. https://www.procon.org/headlines/electoral-college-pros-cons-procon-org/. I think it might actually inflame [the issue of polarization]. Graham discusses one potential benefit of the NPVIC: In states like California, where in almost every case all of the Electoral votes will go to the Democratic Party, what reason does a Republican candidate have to visit there (regardless of the large number of Republicans that reside there)? On Jan. 6, 2021, Congress held a joint session to certify the electoral college votes during which several Republican lawmakers objected to the results and pro-Trump protesters stormed the US Capitol sending Vice President Pence, lawmakers and staff to secure locations. 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. Not only it already happened five times, but in theory, a candidate could win the presidency with only 22% of the popular vote in a two-candidates race. An ever-increasing amount of Americans long for a presidential election to be determined by the popular vote and not the electoral vote. Likewise, the winner of the popular vote is variable. solely those of the author and are not necessarily shared by the Federal will. Their reasoning is that in a formal electoral votes being the number of its Senators plus the number of its Representatives). that in very close popular elections, it is possible that the candidate who wins a slight Small states only get 3 electoral votes, when really, their population, for example in Wyoming, is 584, 153. The total population of the state determines the number of members represents them in Congress. radical changes in policies from one administration to the next. its failure to accurately reflect the national helps to maintain a two party system in the United States. population? Finally, its proponents argue quite correctly that the Electoral College maintains a argument is that, since each State is entitled to the same number of electoral votes [ 1] As of 2020, the state with the largest number of votes is California, with 55 electoral votes. One route would be a constitutional amendment, which would require two-thirds approval from both the House and Senate and ratification by the states, or a constitutional convention called by two-thirds of the state legislatures. Some US territories do not have electors and dont participate in the presidential election, for example Guam or, Finally, the winner-take-all basis favors a. Some critics say this method disproportionately affects minority votes. But in reality its going to come down to states own calculations under what system they have the most power. She compared it to the process of passing a bill or amendment in the sense that states will act in whatever way they see as most beneficial, predicting that states holding more power with the Electoral College are the least likely to adopt the NPVIC. ProCon.org. national and State governments which the Founding Fathers intended and which is reflected 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. Fifteen states and the District of Columbia, which together control 196 electoral votes, have signed on to an interstate compact in which they pledge to grant their votes to the winner of the national popular vote. ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: Copyright 2021 NewsHour Production LLC. When the Electoral College votes for the people, people are not really motivated to be involved in politics. With each census, these electoral votes are redistributed based on new data regarding state population. However, this idea of redirecting the focus of campaigns is a double edged sword. 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. voter participation, the Electoral College actually enhances the status of minority For in a Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. participation. nationwide, he might still end up with no Electoral College votes at all unless he won a The important number is 270. WebWhat are the advantages of National Popular Vote? Proponents further argue that the Electoral Join with confidence, netivist is completely advertisement free. Best, Judith. There are arguments that the states with smaller populations are overrepresented in the Electoral College, because every state gets at least 3 electors regardless of population. Of those visits, nearly two-thirds took place in the four battlegrounds with the most electoral votes Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and North Carolina. [19], Gautam Mukunda, political scientist at Harvard University , explained that states are given electors based on its representation in the House and Senate, so small states get extra votes. If, for example, a third party or The reasoning behind the Electoral College written in the Constitution is simply expressed that political leaders have more knowledge in the fate of the country rather than citizens. not fully understand the effect of different sets of coherent alternatives. What relevance do they have today. Data collected by CNN from the 2000 and 2004 election shows that the majority of Americans wanted George Bush to remain president in 2004 than in 2000. Such a unifying mechanism seems especially prudent in The will of the people is now far better expressed through the resulting popular vote than the electorate of the Electoral College. A candidate could be elected without the popular vote. Pennsylvania is tied between Republican and Democratic representatives, and Michigan has seven Democrats, six Republicans and one independent. Win popular vote in the state, you get two electoral votes. nation by encouraging a two-party system, and. The views expressed here are government. An election based only on popular vote would centralize the election and decrease the visibility and importance of states. Analyze and debate the pros and cons of the Electoral College system. The group as a whole should help that student to prepare his or her argument. One way or another, then, the winning candidate must demonstrate both a Lexington, Mass: Representatives, The official general election results indicate that Trump received 304 Electoral College votes and 46.09% of the popular vote (62,984,825 votes), and Hillary Clinton received 227 Electoral College votes and 48.18% of the popular vote (65,853,516 votes). The system had some unusual results from the start, as evident in the election of 1800, a tie in which Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr received an equal number of electoral votes. College point out, quite correctly, its failure to accurately reflect the work in a rational series of defaults: if, in the first instance, a candidate receives a another (before the meeting of the Electors) or else, absent an absolute majority in the distributed across the States. Washington: American FEC National Clearinghouse on Election Administration. The votes of people in sparsely populated areas have as much weight as those votes of citizens from areas with large populations. Great leaders must be chosen by the people so the leader can represent for the people. electoral votes required to elect a president. A popular vote system would significantly impact voters and turnout. This is often a misconception of the election process. a system of proportional representation? sufficient popular support to govern as well as a sufficient distribution of that support It is because of this "leverage effect" that the presidency, as an institution, Because there is now an even number of electoral votes, a tie is feasible. On election day, voters choosing a presidential candidate are actually casting a vote for an elector. Your vote is anonymous. For example, if you have folks in rural areas that now feel likethey have no voice at all. WebElectoral College pros and cons A candidate could be elected without the popular vote. 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. "faithless Elector" is one who is pledged to vote for his party's candidate for presidential candidates split the electoral votes among them such that no one obtained the WebOver the last few decades, the general trend has been toward reinstating the right to vote at some point, although this is a state-by-state policy choice. A direct popular election of the president would likely have the opposite effect. While the system may seem fair, the Electoral College is at its core an outdated process that heavily favors small swing states, causing the election to not always align with popular vote of the American people. Vote to see result and collect 1 XP. 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. This issue was mentioned above and is discussed at greater length Should People Who Have Completed Felony Sentences Be Allowed to Vote? Pro/Con Arguments | Discussion Questions | Take Action | Sources | More Debates, The debate over the continued use of the Electoral College resurfaced during the 2016 presidential election, when Donald Trump lost the general election to Hillary Clinton by over 2.8 million votes and won the Electoral College by 74 votes. In most states (Maine and Nebraska are the only exceptions) the electors are elected on a winner-take-all basis, which means that the candidate with more votes in one state wins all the pledged electors of thatstate. How is this possible? Bibliography On the Electoral College This is an example of increased voting power that raises the importance of voters even in less populous states. In the Less populous states are favored, because the number of electors is not proportional to the voters count. But since there have been no serious proposals to abolish the United States Senate on That is to say, when the electoral vote outcome is so obviously would lead to the nationalization of our central government - to the detriment of the votes, then the choice of president defaults to the States in the U.S. House of States can design their own mechanism -- without federal involvement -- for choosing their electors. vote (an idea which not even proponents of a direct election seem to advocate). to make much of a showing in the Electoral College. On Jan. 6, 2017, a joint session of the US Congress met to certify the election results and Vice President Joe Biden, presiding as President of the Senate, read the certified vote tally. cast his votes for Lloyd Bensen for president and Michael Dukakis for vice president Rank choice voting? therefore actually damage minority interests since their votes would be overwhelmed by a States also conduct other elections (for U.S. Some states on the political map might say that its the right thing to do, to agree to go with the popular vote. would strike at the very heart of the federal structure laid out in our Constitution and The idea has public support, but faces a partisan divide, since Republicans currently benefit from the electoral clout of less populous, rural states. Forty-eight states use the winner-take-all method of appointing electors. individual State populations is more important than the opinion of the national population Is it fair that a president can be elected without winning the popular vote? 3. The Electoral College should not be changed or abolished, but kept the same. This is an example of increased voting power that raises the importance of voters even in less populous states. Should Election Day Be Made a National Holiday? Recently, critics have expressed that this system is not as equal as predetermined. The Electoral College comprises 538 electors; each state is allowed one elector for each Representative and Senator (DC is allowed 3 electors as established by the Twenty-Third Amendment). Would they like to see the system changed? I think it might actually inflame [the issue of polarization]. Copyright 2023 IPL.org All rights reserved. Election Commissioners. While granting greater impact to smaller states incentivizes voting and promotes participation, and imbalance of power is still an unfair advantage. 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. Without the electoral college, groups such as Iowa farmers and Ohio factory workers would be ignored in favor of pandering to metropolitan areas with higher population densities, leaving rural areas and small towns marginalized. The officials are not bound by law to vote the way the people who elected them want them to vote. Please let us know! Not everyone knows exactly how the president is elected. For as things stand now, no one region contains the absolute majority (270) of Excerpt from an original publication: Kimberling, William C. (1992). in 1988, for example, the combined voting age population (3,119,000) of the seven least Even though, in theory, a pledged elector could change his vote, there have only been very few cases in history when this has happened- Therefore, voters, when casting their ballots, know with almost complete certainty which ticket their vote is will indirectly support. By thus failing to accurately reflect the of popular votes (as evidenced by obtaining the absolute majority of electoral votes); in Lexington Books, 1973. The Electoral College is a group of people that elect the next President. The Electoral College system is when the candidate that wins the popular vote for a certain state takes all the electoral votes for that state. Moreover, they suspected that the citizens would not educated themselves on candidates, and that citizens would not have enough information to make a good judgement. election, though, simply because most often their purpose is to make a statement rather And in 1888, Benjamin Harrison defeated the incumbent president, Grover Cleveland, in the Electoral College, despite losing the popular vote. The Pros and Cons of the Electoral College - SmartAsset The electoral college is a tradition of American politics that's fairly controversial.