Pros And Cons Of The Electoral College

The Electoral College is a collection of 538 votes that will determine who the next President is. This 538 is the same number of Senators and representatives in Congress combined. The 538 votes are devided among the states based on the population of each state, but each state, including District of Colombia, is given three votes to start. The people of each state do not vote directly for the President, rather they vote to tell the electors who to vote for. (New York Times, 2008) “There are a total of 538 electoral votes cast (including the District of Colombia), and a candidate needs a simple majority -270- to win. For most states, the candidate who wins a majority of votes in that state takes all of its electors. The only exceptions are the states of Maine and Nebraska, which split their electoral votes in proportion to the popular vote” (Levin-Waldman, 2012).

Pros- The electoral College allows each states vote to count, instead of focusing only on states with larger populations.
Cons- In a fair democracy, everyone’s vote should count equally, but the Electoral College violates this principle by making sure that some people’s vote are more equal than others.
“Under our admittedly complex and convoluted system, a single vote for president in the state of Wyoming, for instance, counts for more than a single vote in California. Tiny Wyoming has an inflated number of electoral votes -- three-- because every state is awarded a minimum of three. California, with a population of over fofty times as large as Wyoming, has only a little more than eight times as many electoral votes. This means that a vote in Wyoming counts about three times more than a vote in California” (Bates,
2004).

One proposal to change how the Electoral College works is the National Popular Vote bill. This would guarantee the presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular vote in the entire United States, while avoiding outcomes such as the 2000 election where George W. Bush became the next president, even though Al Gore won the popular vote. John Koza, who founded the National Popular Vote project, hopes to force presidential candidates to campaign in all fifty states, rather than them spending all of their time and money in only fifteen states. (Loeb, 2011)

References

(2008, November 3). Electoral College 101. New York Times Upfront, 141(5), 6-7.

Bates, N. (2004, October 26). What are the arguments made in favor – and against – the Electoral College? History News Network. Retrieved from http://hnn.us/articles/8163.html

Levin-Waldman, O. M. (2012). American government. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc

Loeb, M. (2011, August 9). California votes to bypass Electoral College. National Journal.