13 Early College High School Pros and Cons, 18 Major Advantages and Disadvantages of the Payback Period, 20 Advantages and Disadvantages of Leasing a Car, 19 Advantages and Disadvantages of Debt Financing, 24 Key Advantages and Disadvantages of a C Corporation, 16 Biggest Advantages and Disadvantages of Mediation, 18 Advantages and Disadvantages of a Gated Community, 17 Big Advantages and Disadvantages of Focus Groups, 17 Key Advantages and Disadvantages of Corporate Bonds, 19 Major Advantages and Disadvantages of Annuities, 17 Biggest Advantages and Disadvantages of Advertising. Closed Captioning and Described Video is available for many CBC shows offered on CBC Gem. That is, more Americans voted for the candidate but he or she still lost. That means the bill needs 74 votes to reach a 270 majority, putting it into effect across the country. Here is a list of the number of electoral votes for each state: In all states except Nebraska and Maine, electors are awarded on a winner-take-all basis. A Defense of the Electoral College - Homepage | NEH-Edsitement Besides DC and the 15 states that have enacted it, the bill has passed at least one chamber in nine additional states. That said, we need to think carefully about what might replace it. Box 500 Station A Toronto, ON Canada, M5W 1E6. 12 Proportional Representation Pros and Cons - Vittana.org Relatively easy to implement, would not require redistribution of riding boundaries or an increase in the number of MPs. This is the feature that defines the character of American presidential elections. The last amendment, the 27th Amendment to the Constitution, was ratified nearly 200 years after it was originally proposed. You get all of Michigans electoral votes whether you win by one vote or a million votes. Voters can follow their hearts and rank smaller parties first, without fear that they're "wasting" their votes on parties with no hope of forming government or that they're inadvertently helping a party they don't want to win. Advantages and Disadvantages of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, Follow All U.S. Citizens Should Vote. Coupled with gerrymandering, it hinders democracy instead of supporting it. Thats the way it has been in this country for a long time. Fifteen states and DC have already enacted it into law, for a total of 196 electoral votes. Favors no party size in particular, though greatly improves potential for minority parties e.g., a third political party in the U.S. Winner-take-all for Electoral College votes is unfair, unconstitutional Latest answer posted November 10, 2019 at 3:31:40 PM, Latest answer posted March 03, 2021 at 4:39:54 PM. THE BAD. Although faithless electors have not affected the results or outcome of an election yet, in 2016, there were 7 faithless electors. If a popular vote were allowed to declare a winner instead, it wouldnt be through a state-by-state counting of electoral votes. This is not unique to the United States. That internal habit formation is reinforced externally, too, as Mark N. Franklin of Trinity College described in a book exploring aspects of voter turnout. Unexpected emergencies would be difficult to handle. The 24 countries that had youth turnout data available were richer, more democratic and more literate than the 168 countries we contacted that didnt. America today is not as divided as it was before the Civil War or after. No states have moved to do this on their own, for the same reason they drifted to winner-take-all in the first place: Anything else dilutes their power and takes votes away from their favored candidates. Whereas you casted your ballot, you're not actually voice directly for your favored presidential candidate. Or should the popular vote be used instead? The disproportionate influence of swing states (and the resulting attention given to those states) is one of the main criticisms of the winner-take-all system. The problem is that twice since 2000, the person with the most votes didn't win. 3. You might imagine that people in rich, highly democratic countries are more likely to vote. The need for candidates to ensure that smaller states are represented in the quest for 270 electoral votes is preserved with the Electoral College as opposed to strictly popular vote. Theres nothing to stop a state from awarding electoral votes at the level of congressional districts, as Maine and Nebraska do, says Dr. McCann. For example, in 1967, 58 percent favored its abolition, while in 1981, 75 percent of . Only Montana, Nevada, Nebraska, Minnesota, Indiana and Washington have passed the Uniform Faithful Presidential Electors Act, which requires votes from faithless electors to be disregarded and replaced with a new elector. In addition to the US, there are 40 democracies around the world that have a presidential role with real and symbolic power. In recent years in the U.S., they write, the number of young people who express an interest in elections (76 percent), care who is president (74 percent), have interest in public affairs (85 percent), and intend to vote (83 percent) is especially high.. Most states didnt award their electors on a winner-take-all basis in the first presidential elections, and even today there are two states that do not: Nebraska and Maine, which award some electoral votes by congressional district. Almost a century ago, the political scientists Charles E. Merriam and Harold F. Gosnell identified several groups of Americans whose turnout rates were comparatively low, including young people, minorities, the less educated and the poor all of whom are still less likely to vote today. In the Electoral College, the small states are overrepresnted. Here's What Critics Say Is Wrong With The Electoral College : NPR A direct popular election also ensures that citizens' votes have equal weight. A faithless elector in the United States is someone who casts an electoral ballot for someone other than the individuals to whom they are pledged. If these trends continue, its possible that the dynamics of the 2016 election could reverse themselves. And that would undermine the legitimacy of the NPV among those people. For example, says Dr. McCann, if one candidate received 30% of the vote in a state with ten electoral votes, she would get three electoral votes from that state.. In a direct popular election, a candidate could theoretically win without having broad support throughout the country. Short term: Get young people the specific information they need to register and make it to the polls. Awarding electoral votes based on proportional representation is another option. There are logistical issues that are managed at the local level in each election. Even though the Electoral College has some inherently anti-democratic tendencies, it is at least reassuring that the tradition of assigning electoral votes based on voter preferences within the state is being upheld.. In theory we could change how we elect our president every four years. States can design their own mechanism -- without federal involvement -- for choosing their electors. Explain. A candidate can lose the popular vote but still become President 2) The Electoral College gives disproportionate weight to the small states 3) . A switch to the popular vote would eliminate the concept of a battleground state because the issue would be more on issues than states. And finally, the Electoral College doesnt work today anywhere near how the Founding Fathers intended it to work when they created it back in 1787. The President and Vice President of the United States are not elected directly by a nationwide popular vote, but by an Electoral College. i.e., they vote for another candidate or fail to vote. Even if states impose fines on faithless electors for their actions, it is not a guarantee that the behavior will stop. This is rooted in the idea that the Constitution works best when it is not changed and elminating the Electoral College removes a portion of it that has been in place for some time. [ 2] Latest answer posted April 13, 2021 at 10:47:36 AM. How does the system currently work? Before the 2016 election, the largest vote deficit in the popular vote was Al Gore securing over 500,000 votes more than George W. Bush. Clinton got 4.3 million more votes than Trump in California. Under the electoral college system (and other voting systems not based on popular voting), it only takes one extra vote more than the other candidate to create the needed results for the election. By which system do most US states allocate their Electoral College votes? Latest answer posted November 30, 2020 at 11:03:44 AM. 2. Gives too few states too much electoral power. The second is that the traditional battlegrounds are whiter and less educated than the country as a whole. All other elections in the U.S. are through the popular vote. Smaller states are overrepresented, and states that arent swing states (like Indiana) get little to no attention from presidential and vice-presidential candidates during campaigns.. Maine and Nebraska use a slightly different method for allocating electoral votes. Answer (1 of 5): The objective of election is that the all eligible voters elect only those candidates who are capable and work to promote best interests of the people. Relatively easy for voters to understand, less complicated than PR models. That would be a sensible model for the US to adopt if we were to drop the Electoral College.. The Electoral College (EC) dilutes the effect of the most populous states and preserves a greater amount of influence to the smaller states than they would have under a national popular vote. No. That means the cost of counting all the votes would be duplicated. And Anthony Fowler of the University of Chicago found that permitting future voters to preregister at age 16 or 17, making them automatically registered on their 18th birthday, increases both registration and turnout by 2.1 percentage points. In her book about voter turnout, Meredith Rolfe of the University of Massachusetts points out that in U.S. elections, turnout is higher in states that make it easier to register to vote, for example by permitting it right up to an election, having registration offices that are open evenings and weekends and allowing absentee registration. If this were to happen in 2020, the Republican party would get a majority and elect Trump. A total of five US Presidents have now come into office despite losing the popular vote. It even has the potential to worsen the kind of crises it was intended to prevent. That offers the possibility that someone unwilling or unable to hold the office could be elected. His win made him the first President in more than 100 years to attain the White House despite a popular vote loss,2 and it led to renewed . Log in here. Mandatory, regional delegates run for given district's delegate locations via their party or individually. In other words, the higher the youth voting rate, the closer the youth rate is likely to be to the overall rate. Whats so interesting is that this defining feature is largely unintended. It gives each vote an equal amount of power. More than the Electoral College may have to change to ensure equal representation across the country. Voting is a habit formed over time, and one possible reason young people do it less frequently is they have had fewer opportunities to form and reinforce the habit. Most young people in the United States don't vote. The most important thing to remember, experts said, is to consider these short, medium and long-term interventions in combination any single one taken in isolation isnt likely to drive a big increase in youth voter turnout. Reduces voter participation by creating a "my vote doesn't matter" feeling. Yet another criticism is that it discourages voters in states where one party holds a substantial majority i.e. eNotes Editorial, 9 Nov. 2010, https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-would-the-disadvantages-we-had-popular-vote-217127. Electors are typically chosen and nominated by the political party or the party's presidential nominee, so chances of them turning faithless is low. -, Trump lost the popular vote. By adding this new interstate compact to the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system to elect our president we are in fact making this system even more complicated and even harder for the voters to understand. The Electoral College creates distortions in political campaigns and voting outcomes most people would find objectionable, says Dr. James McCann, political science professor at Purdue. Its not clear that there was anything about the distribution of Mrs. Clintons support that inevitably put it at a disadvantage in a winner-take-all system. Prior to the 2016 election, there were four times in US history when a candidate won the presidency despite losing the popular vote: 1824 (John Quincy Adams over Andrew Jackson), 1876 (Rutherford . Under a ranked ballot, it would have to win more than 50 per cent. Because of the Winner-Take-All state laws candidates for president only campaign and spend their money in 12-13 swing states because voters in those few swing states determine who wins the election and presidential candidates totally ignore voters in the rest of the country(except to raise money). In the first round, if no candidate gets a majority, then several weeks later a runoff election between the two top finishers is held. Senator Elizabeth Warren, who is running for president, at a campaign event in Memphis this week. 7. | Certified Educator Share Cite The majority of U.S. states incorporate some form of judicial election via partisan contested elections, non-partisan contested. However, a group of Southern lawmakers in the Senate filibustered the bill to prevent the loss of their electoral power. The gist: electors choices should reflect the will of the people. The aim of the National Popular Vote is to ensure the popular vote dictates the Electoral College results, making every vote in every state count. In the 2020 election California did not certify their votes until Friday, December 11, only 3 days before the Electoral College met on Monday, December, 14. Instead of a direct popular election, the United States has the Electoral College, a group of electors who represent each state's votes. That could lead to a very bad situation where, instead of the people voting in November to determine who the next president is, one or two states could effectively decide who becomes the next president simply by joining or withdrawing from the NPV Compact and changing the rules on how the votes for president are counted in the next election. But the biggest problem with changing how we elect our president using the NPV Compact is that its too easy to change it back. On the other hand, both the Democrat and Republican parties will be affected. But it doesnt appear to be a feasible reform proposal, at least for now. All other votes cast for that candidate are therefore superfluous. The National Popular Vote has been under consideration for quite some time, says Dr. McCann. At that stage, anyone who received an electoral vote is eligible to become the next president. Thats a bank of about 14 million potential voters that reliably vote as a majority for Democratic candidates. Another 100 years from now, the situation may well be reversed. I will explain that in another blog post. Moving to the popular vote structure would eliminate this potential issue. In 2012, Mitt Romney won 48% of the popular vote but only 38% of the electoral vote. Delegates convene and vote. . Every state gets only two senators, no matter how populous. There are legitimate arguments to keep the present winner-take-all system, even arguments that todays progressive opponents of the Electoral College could appreciate. Electoral College's Advantages and Disadvantages - Ivypanda There would be a reduced need to build coalitions. Provides more choice for voters - Voters can vote for the candidate they truly feel is best, without concern about the spoiler effect. 12.2 The Presidential Election Process - American Government 3e | OpenStax In the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton won 48.2% of the popular vote compared to Trump's 46.1% but lost the electoral vote by a substantial margin (304 to 227). Data suggests these trends are especially pronounced among young people. And thats not how it should be in a democracy. Instant Runoff Voting (IRV)/Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) Probably the only alternative voting method you've heard about, after being the first alternative voting method to be implemented at the state level. Advantages & Disadvantages of a Direct Popular Election Our summaries and analyses are written by experts, and your questions are answered by real teachers. Wyoming had just 3 electoral votes, but only had 255,000 voters as well. The Electoral College vs. Popular Vote Explained - The New York Times An Electoral College map from the 1976 Carter/Ford campaign that was used by the 1980 Reagan campaign to strategize. May also have government oversight organizations. And although the United States isnt alone in seeing a gap, it fares pretty dismally, with the fifth-lowest youth turnout in the sample and the fourth-biggest gap between youth and overall turnout. In 33 of those countries, voters directly elect their president. After all, the Electoral College makes it possible that a candidate who wins the majority of the votes could still lose the election. That principle should be expanded to presidential elections. eNotes.com will help you with any book or any question. The candidate who gets the most votes nationwide is said to have won the popular vote. Image the country thinks it is going to elect the president by National Popular Vote and then changing back to using the old Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system just four months before an election. The electoral requires that an election which does not receive a majority of electoral votes be taken into the U.S. House of Representatives. Using the NPV system means that every vote counts the same. A presidential candidate needs 270 (just over 50%) electoral votes to win. In 2000 and 2016, the candidate who won the popular vote did not win the electoral college. Is the gap between young and older voters consistent around the world? -, Americas electoral system gives the Republicans advantages over Democrats -, American democracys built-in bias towards rural Republicans -, How a single person could decide the election -. We would probably see elections dominated by the most populous regions of the country or by several large metropolitan areas. Why Don't Young People Vote? - The New York Times Thirty-three states legally prevent faithless electors, or electors who dont vote for the states chosen candidate. 2020s tension-filled election cycle may demonstrate why. 6. It would be wrong to assume that Hillary Clinton or Al Gore would have been president had the electoral college been abolished and elections were to be decided by popular vote. PBS: What does voter turnout tell us about the 2016 election. There may even be "safe" states in U.S. presidential elections since most states award all electoral votes to the majority candidate. Regional candidates could secure enough votes to win a national election.
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