Have you ever wondered what the US would be like if our government was a tyranny? Well, thanks to our founding fathers for creating a strong constitution, we don’t have to worry about that. The constitution was written in 1787 in Philadelphia. The problem was that the existing government that was under the Articles Of Confederation wasn’t very successful. Therefore, the fifty-five delegates representing twelve out of the thirteen states came together to tweak our constitution to create a strong government without allowing one person, or group of people to have too much power. The framers used the Constitution to protect against Tyranny in three ways federalism, separation of powers, and checks and balances.…
The years 1776 to 1787 are often considered to be the most important and fateful when compared to all other epochs of American History: the now self-proclaimed Americans, having rebelled against royal authority, needed to develop a new system of government in order to survive. To accomplish such a feat, they needed a basis on which to establish this new authority. Established in autumn of 1777 and fully ratified in 1781, the Articles of Confederation was just this. These documents, at best a primitive constitution, were formed to be the basis of the federal government. While correctly serving as such, the Articles of Confederation subjected the United States to a series of problems in both domestic and foreign respects. Increasing in adversity with each aching year, these documents only brought about one good effect: they showed the Americans that a weak and disorganized government like the one during the Articles’ reign could never work.…
When citizens vote and cast their ballot for the candidate that they believe will be fit for president, they are not voting directly for their favored candidate. Instead of a direct popular election, the United States has the Electoral College, a group of elected electors who represent a certain states votes. The Electoral College was established by the constitution to protect minority interests and reduce the possibility of a regional candidate. However, some believe that the advantages of a direct popular vote election, such as its consideration of democratic values, outweigh the disadvantages. While others believe that the Electoral College has been put in place to hinder regional candidates not allow it to happen.…
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).…
The Electoral College, established by the founding fathers in the United States Constitution, is a process whereby a body of electors chosen by voters in each state cast a formal vote to elect the president and vice president. Among many other things established within the Constitution, the Electoral College requires extensive reform. The Constitution itself was merely a framework for the United States government and did not take into account the extent to which society would change between 1787 and 2015. Amidst the several problems constituted by the Electoral College, the four most threatening complications consist of the possibility for the loser of the popular vote to win the electoral vote, the inequality among the distribution of votes according to population, the exclusion of third party victors, and the consequences that arise in case of a tie.…
The U.S constitution was Americas founding document as it set up there key principles of freedom and democracy. When the founding fathers drew up the constitution their intention was that it would last the course of the U.S history. Many people firmly hold the view that U.S constitution does still work very well today as it restrains the power of government, it is highly adaptable for changing time and allowing power and rights to the states while still allowing the federal government to efficient and productive. However many people believe the U.S constitution has failed as it as many outdated amendments such as the 2nd amendment the right to bear arms. Also many Liberal Democrats argue that it leads to political gridlock much too often. Also on the other side of the coin many Republicans argue that it gives way too much power to government as judicial review for example is in the hands of just 9 Supreme Court justices.…
I will state my position towards the electoral college along with the pros and cons leading to my choice. I will explain why the people should want to keep it along with why some don’t want to trust it. I will also explain what will happen if it goes away because we know what it does.…
The Constitutional Convention of 1787 gave birth to the system of the Electoral College. Electoral College system can be described as a system in which voters vote for electors on election day, who then cast their vote for candidate in their respective party. Our Founding Fathers described this system in Article II, section 1 of the Constitution. According to the Constitution, electors per state are equal to the number of seats each state holds in the Congress, which include the Senate and the House of Representative delegations. California holds the most Electoral which are 54 electors. However, with every census the numbers of each state electoral change due to the process called reapportionment.…
In 1787 our founding fathers gathered in the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia, in the exact same room our Declaration of Independence had been signed a few years prior. This group of men was faced with the immense task of drafting the Constitution of the United States of America. Our founding fathers showed such brilliant foresight in how they structured this foundational document by recognizing the need for a Constitution designed to keep our government regulated. We will be exploring different facets within the structure of the Constitution, looking closely at some of those regulations such as Separation of Powers and Checks and Balances. Through this exploration we will come to understand the importance of these aspects, why they are so…
I will state my position towards the electoral college along with the pros and cons leading to my choice. I will explain why the people should want to keep it along with why some don’t want to trust it. I will also explain what will happen if it goes away because we know what it does.…
Many people argue that the Electoral College is an outdated system. After all, many things have changed in the last two centuries. For one, technology is much more advanced now than it was two hundred years ago. With the internet and television, we can now learn everything about a candidate regardless of where the come from in the nation. It is feasible to have direct election of a president because of these improved methods of communication and the evolution of technology in general.…
The 2000 United States (U.S.) presidential election concluded with Vice President Al Gore winning half a million more popular votes than George W. Bush (50,992,335 to 50,455,156) yet losing the White House in the Electoral College by only five votes (271 to 266). It once again raised questions about the validity of the Electoral College as the same scenario has occurred in the 1824, 1876, and 1888 presidential elections. This essay will discuss two problems of the Electoral College: the failure to accurately reflect national popular vote will and the problem of state bias. I argue that the U.S. should abolish the Electoral College and implementthe direct popular election of the president.…
Every four years, Americans stand in lines, eager to vote for their candidate and hope they win. Sadly, many Americans don’t realize their influence on the election is pretty minimal. The votes go to the state, and whatever candidate has more votes in that state, wins the state. Even if the popular vote is for the opposite candidate that wins, hence 2016’s election. The Electoral College should be abolished, and be replaced in the constitution by the popular vote, which represents each individual's real vote.…
The United States Electoral College is an integral part of America’s political system. In 1787, the delegates of the Constitutional Convention decided on the creation of the Electoral College, or a system under which a body is elected with the expressed purpose of itself electing a higher body. The College was established by Article Two, Section One of the United States Constitution. (Lesson 2: Political Participation, n.d.) The Founding Fathers wished to provide the people of each state the ability every four years to choose the number of electors who would vote in the Electoral College, who would in turn determine which candidate would enter the White House as the nation’s next president. (Watts, 2010) For the past 200 years, the Electoral…
The electoral college has continued to be a controversial topic for several years now. The electoral college is a process used in the presidential election. It was first proposed to Congress on December 9, 1803 (Twelfth Amendment). This means that the electoral college has been around for over two hundred years, yet some Americans still wonder if the electoral college is a fair system? A key factor in deciding if it is fair would be to understand why we have the electoral college and how it works.…