Evidence as to how a nationwide presidential campaign would be run can be found by examining the way presidential candidates currently campaign inside battleground states. ThoughtCo, Feb. 17, 2021, thoughtco.com/electoral-college-pros-and-cons-4686409. Thats how politics works in America. The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact will guarantee the Presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. That offers the possibility that someone unwilling or unable to hold the office could be elected. It only takes five people with life tenure to actually amend this Constitution through a judicial opinion, she said. The official 2016 election results from the Electoral College gave Donald J. Trump the victory with 306 electoral votes v. Hillary Clinton's 232 votes. Individual states agree to pledge their electors to the winner of the national popular vote, provided that enough other states follow suit. It would take a constitutional amendment to abolish the Electoral College an unlikely move because of how difficult it is to pass and ratify constitutional changes. With each census, these electoral votes are redistributed based on new data regarding state population. Abolishing the Electoral College would require a constitutional amendment, a lengthy and often unsuccessful process. Robert Longley is a U.S. government and history expert with over 30 years of experience in municipal government and urban planning. After all, the Electoral College makes it possible that a candidate who wins the majority of the votes could still lose the election. It was a great idea in 1787 but the country has changed since 1787 and the people today want to elect the president by a simple, direct popular vote where whoever gets the most votes wins like we do in every other election in the country. It has also happened four times out of the 56 presidential elections. Longley, Robert. Constitutional Amendment to Guarantee the Right to Vote for All U.S. Citizens. For the popular vote, however, Hillary Clinton received 65.8 million votes, while Donald Trump received 62.9 million votes. Lastly, the biggest problem that the Electoral College produces is the reality that a persons vote really doesnt matter (Black). Idea to keep electoral college but add 102bvotes. Then, election officials in all participating states would choose the electors sworn to support thepresidential candidate who received the largest number of popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. If some of the 50 states and DC cannot certify their popular votes by the December deadline that could create a constitutional crisis where we would not have all of the state Electoral College votes certified by the time the Electoral College is required to vote according to the Constitution. 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. There are currently 538 electors, and to be elected, a candidate must get the votes of at least 270 electors. The conference's consulting services on policy issues go beyond testifying. The House of Representatives picked Adams over Andrew Jackson, who won the popular vote but only a plurality of the Electoral College. 2. Yes. Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia have laws that require electors to vote for their pledged candidate. That means the bill needs 74 votes to reach a 270 majority, putting it into effect across the country . A direct popular election also ensures that citizens' votes have equal weight. As of July 2020, a National Popular Vote bill has been signed into law in 16 states controlling a total of 196 electoral votes, including 4 small states, 8 medium-sized states, 3 big states (California, Illinois, and New York), and the District of Columbia. But for those people who feel that changing how we elect the president should only be done by constitutional amendment they will feel that using the NPV Compact will undermine the legitimacy of the process even though its perfectly legal and constitutional. Inside Ohio or Florida, to pick two examples, the big cities do not receive all the attention, and they certainly do not control the outcome. Under the electoral college system, if a state consistently pulls as leaning to one party, someone who supports the other party may not vote because they feel like there isnt a need to do so. Based on Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution granting the states the exclusive power to control how their electoral votes are awarded, the National Popular Vote plan requires the legislature of each participating state to enact a bill agreeing that the state will award all of its electoral votes to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, regardless of the outcome of the popular vote in that specific state. In addition, while the Founders considered the electors as being free from any sinister bias in 1788, electors today are selected by the political parties and are usually pledged to vote for the partys candidate regardless of their own beliefs. on Advantages and Disadvantages of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, Follow All U.S. Citizens Should Vote. Eliminating the winner-take-all requirement of the Electoral College at the state level would lessen the tendency for the swing states to dominate the electoral process. 1. (The District of Columbia gets three, despite the fact that the home to Congress has no vote in Congress.). The Electoral College is very undemocratic and riddled with issues. 3. On Dec. 14, as electors gathered across the country to cast their ballots, Joseph R. Biden Jr. had earned 306 electoral votes, 36 more than needed to win. Since 2008, 15 states and the District of Columbia have passed laws to adopt the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC), which is an multi-state agreement to commit electors to. But . The Pros and Cons of the Electoral College - SmartAsset The electoral college is a tradition of American politics that's fairly controversial. Another movement is attempting to convince states to split their electoral vote based on the percentage of the states popular vote for each candidate. You have to win the set, and in our system, you have to win the state.. The Pros and Cons of Pooled Employer Plans: Debate. Two exceptions are Maine and Nebraska, which rely on congressional districts to divvy up electoral votes. When the Constitution was set in place in 1789, the U.S. elected its first president. National Popular Vote is a constitutional and practical way to implement nationwide popular election of the President a goal traditionally supported by an overwhelming majority of Americans How does the system currently work? It has its pros and cons though, many of which critics debate over. The group as a whole should help that student to prepare his or her argument. Each vote would affect each candidate instead of being overlooked due to which state those votes would be coming from. All in all, the Electoral College causes many problems that seem unfair to American voters during such an important election. Cons of Electoral College. Pros: Gives the smaller states an equal voice. For more information on this topic, use this form to reach NCSL staff. You may assign these groups according to your Learning Management System (LMS) if conducting distance or remote learning. Some states, such as California and Hawaii, both had their bills vetoed by their governors before it was overridden and enacted by state legislators. I am confident that when we enter the next phase where the popular vote leans Republican that Republicans will change and be adamant that we should elect the president by direct popular vote and Democrats will be arguing why we should keep the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system. However, that support diverges widely based on political parties, with support from 89 percent of Democrats and only 23 percent of Republicans. Instead of a direct popular election, the United States has the Electoral College, a group of electors who represent each state's votes. However, in the popular vote, Trump only received 62,984,825 votes against Hillary Clinton's 65,853,516 popular votes. When a popular vote is held for a national office, the election becomes more about platform issues than local issues. If a popular vote were allowed to declare a winner instead, it wouldnt be through a state-by-state counting of electoral votes. What relevance do they have today. Over the long run the countrys popular vote in presidential elections has roughly been equally split between Republican and Democratic.*. First, have students meet in small groups to discuss and debate. Sets found in the same folder. Even the minority party wouldnt be encouraged to negotiate because they could simply stall until the next election. 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. Pennsylvania is tied between Republican and Democratic representatives, and Michigan has seven Democrats, six Republicans and one independent. More people live in urban regions, which means they would have a constant sway over the election. If that happens in the Electoral College, then the decision goes to the newly seated House of Representatives, with each state voting as a unit. Find the most comprehensive and complete 50-state information in NCSL's searchable bill tracking databases. Under the electoral college system, the candidates which receive the most votes in each state (or district) receive its assigned electoral votes. The 102 extra electoral votes are calculated from allotting two votes for every state and for Washington, D.C. In 2004, for example, candidates George W. Bush and John Kerry campaigned heavily in states such as Nevada while ignoring political issues in New York, a state that Kerry was sure to win, according to the University of the Pacific. "Electoral College Pros and Cons." All other elections in the U.S. are through the popular vote. President Trump had earned 232 electoral votes. Also the NPV Compact allows states to withdraw from the compact as late as four months before an election. Graphic shows scenario in which a presidential candidate can win the popular vote but lose the election. In U.S. history, there has been one vice-presidential candidate who died after being nominated and one that withdrew from their partys ticket. Once effective, states could withdraw from the compact at any time except during the six-month window between July 20 of an election year and Inauguration Day (January 20). National bonus plan. When you vote for a presidential candidate, you are actually voting for a group of electors from your state who have all pledged to vote for your candidate. Currently, candidates focus more on swing and battleground states to help them gain those electoral votes. It would eliminate superfluous votes. Pro: It's the only way to avoid defaulting. Start and finish your paper with ease. 6. The Electoral College also inspires many what-if scenarios, some of them more likely than others. Weve already seen this issue take place with the GOP primaries in 2016. Secondly, it creates a minimalist depiction in the minds of the candidate towards more than 40 states. A direct popular election would make it more possible for third-party candidates to succeed and would also encourage political parties to become more radical and extreme. 6. Certain penalties exist in other states. boyd's article "electoral college system challenged" proves that the system is outdated and misrepresents the national popular will. Imagine a scenario where a presidential candidate focuses on Los Angeles, New York City, Portland, OR and Seattle. 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. 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. 15 states and Washington, D.C. have joined the National Popular Vote compact. All other votes cast for that candidate are therefore superfluous. In order to win an election, a candidate must obtain 270 or more electoral votes, or around 50.2% of all votes. Battleground states would disappear in U.S. elections. NCSL conducts policy research in areas ranging from agriculture and budget and tax issues to education and health care to immigration and transportation. While it has provided a stable and predictable framework for presidential elections, it has also produced several controversial outcomes. The National Popular Vote would go into effect when states controlling 270a simple majorityof the total 538 electoral votes. It would eliminate the threat of a faithless elector. Richards earned a master's degree at Carnegie Mellon University. If the National Popular Vote bill was secured within the American government, it would protect every vote and would allow those votes to equally matter in the presidential election. This is a situation that has caused controversy in the election years of of 1800, 1876, 1888, 2000 and 2016 when the elected president won the Electoral College and the presidency but did not win the popular vote. In theory we could change how we elect our president every four years. Some hope to reduce the Electoral Colleges importance without an amendment. And thats not how it should be in a democracy. Reduces voter participation by creating a "my vote doesn't matter" feeling. That still faces an uphill climb, though. Many Americans are confused about how a win is obtained under these conditions and are on a quest to change this traditional statute. The electoral college encourages a two-party system and rewards candidates who have broad appeal. That would increase the amount of polarization being experienced in politics today because there would be less of a need to compromise. Students may work individually or in small groups. It was a compromise between those who wanted direct popular elections for president and those who preferred to have Congress decide. Security would be improved across the country. Join the thousands across the country who instantly rally when there is a threat to our democracy. The Electoral College was devised at the Constitutional Convention in 1787. Despite the name, it is not a college in the modern educational sense, but refers to a collegium or group of colleagues. If this happens many people in the red states will not feel that the change is legitimate even if its legal and technically constitutional. Under the current structure of the electoral college, the focus of a presidential campaign is on the so-called battleground states. The votes of those who do not live in closely divided battleground states effectively count less. Americans are still bent up and flustered on how an individual could lose the popular vote, but still, be given the upper hand in Electoral College votes. It would reduce the influence of third parties on the U.S. presidential election. But theres a separate movement that calls for a compact of states to allocate all their electoral votes to the national popular vote winner, regardless of how those individual states opted in an election. 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. The Supreme Court has said in local and state elections voting should be based on the principle of one person one vote. Some areas may bend the rules of an election by extending voting hours illegally. NCSL actively tracks more than 1,400 issue areas. Currently, the National Popular Vote bill has 172 electoral votes. Hillary Clinton won the popular vote but Trump won the Electoral College. New York Times columnist David Brooks and Washington Post associate editor Jonathan Capehart join Amna Nawaz to discuss the week in politics, Hear from two columnists with different political ideologies discuss the week in politics, Hear New York Times columnist David Brooks and Washington Post associate editor Jonathan Capehart join Geoff Bennett to discuss the week in politics. The allotment of the extra votes would almost always ensure that the person who wins the popular vote would also win the Electoral College. The National Popular Vote stems from the winner-take-all approach that validates the presidential candidate interactions with only 4 out of 50 dates during their campaign. For the popular vote, however, Hillary Clinton received 65.8 million votes, while Donald Trump received 62.9 million votes. 1. This brings us to 196 of the 270 (73%) electoral votes needed to activate the pact just 74 votes away. Should that happen, then the final decision of who gets to serve as President of the United States is taken away from individual voters. 2. Resource allocation would be focused on paid advertising, which would negate the need for grassroots activities. Dont know what Ranked Choice Voting is? Fair or not fair? Hillary Clinton won the popular vote but Trump won the Electoral College. FEC:The Electoral College An individuals vote doesnt make a difference when it is counted against the votes of the delegates in the House of Representatives and Senate. The National Bonus Plan was proposed by historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. Its how many sets you win and not how many games or points you win. April 23, 2023. . The Early Learning Fellows Program is a year long opportunity to legislators and legislative staff particularly interested in the topic of early care and education. A popular vote election would bring the presidential election in line with the rest of the election structures. There would be fewer opportunities to illegally alter the results of an election. Some states replace electors and cancel their votes if they break their pledge. If there is a tie vote in a states delegation, the states vote would not count. This hybrid system means that more weight is given to a single vote in a small state than the vote of someone in a large state, leading to outcomes at times that have been at odds with the popular vote. And the American citizens who live in territories like Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands are not represented by any electors. 211 Next The President-Elect takes the oath of office and is sworn in as President of the United States on January 20th in the year following the Presidential election (Archives). With a popular vote in place, each election win would be decreed a mandate to follow the platform of the winning party. All samples were added by students. We answer more than 20,000 requests for information a year. And in 1888, Benjamin Harrison defeated the incumbent president, Grover Cleveland, in the Electoral College, despite losing the popular vote. This means that the U.S. would fundamentally be unable to pay back its existing loans, described by Bloomberg as a "major disaster" that could significantly impact the world economy. Its just like in tennis, he said. That means a candidate who receives a majority of their votes in a high-delegate state, such as California, could make a dramatic impact on the rest of the election. Under the electoral college system of voting, the number of representatives a state has in Congress (Senators and Representatives) is the total number of electoral votes it is allowed. It would reduce diversity in the election structures. It could help to reduce partisanship. A popular vote structure would virtually eliminate the idea of a third-party candidate having a chance in an election. For the 7 presidential elections between 1992-2016, the Republican candidate has won the Electoral college 3 times. Thus, the National Popular Vote plan will take effect when enacted by states controlling an additional 74 electoral votes. Although it is sometimes conjectured that a national popular election would focus only on big cities, it is clear that this would not be the case. Each state is allowed one elector for each of its Representatives and Senators in Congress. The Electoral College was established in the Constitution to protect minority interests and mitigate the possibility of a regional candidate. Ultimately, any disputes about the procedure could land everything in the Supreme Court. If the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact becomes law it would be an excellent first step to help get a future amendment to the Constitution to replace the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system to elect the president with a national popular vote using Ranked Choice Voting. The country could become less stable and divided if he or she did not have a vast amount of support (Richards). By continuing well assume youre on board with our, https://samploon.com/electoral-college-and-national-popular-vote-pros-and-cons/, Select a writer from a large pool of experts. "Electoral College Pros and Cons." 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. A presidential candidate needs at least 26 votes to win. In the early 19th century, many states ratified an approach that would allow the candidate with the most votes in that state to be the winner. Moving to the popular vote structure would eliminate this potential issue. For instance, if you have a score of 659 and are borrowing 75% of the home's value, you'll pay a fee equal to 1.5% of the loan balance whereas you'd pay no fee if you had a 780+ credit score. Under the Electoral College system, voters in states that are overwhelmingly in support of one candidate might feel like their vote is unimportant. The selection of presidential electors is specifically entrusted to the states by the Constitution. Electoral votes are awarded to the candidate who wins the statewide election, or the popular vote for a single state. The last amendment, the 27th Amendment to the Constitution, was ratified nearly 200 years after it was originally proposed. Breaking News: Biden Vetoes Congressional Resolution Blocking ESG Rule . However, many people believe that a direct popular election is more democratic and fair than the Electoral College. (2021, Jun 14). Regional candidates could secure enough votes to win a national election. Gordon Kaye, 68, of Tampa, Florida was reported missing on April 26. Under the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system votes in small states, like Wyoming or Delaware count double what votes in large states like California or Texas. 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. The Compact ensures that every vote, in every state, will matter in every presidential election. When you cast your ballot, you're not actually voting directly for your favored presidential candidate. Less would get done, which would affect the needs of households at the local level. Congress broke the tie, and Jefferson became president and Burr became vice president. NCSLs experts are here to answer your questions and give you unbiased, comprehensive information as soon as you need it on issues facing state legislatures. That important decision ultimately falls to the Electoral College. Learn more about how the National Popular Vote compact works and the ways it could make our elections better for everyone. In a closely contested direct popular election, every precinct across the country might require close examination, rather than a handful of states or precincts. Because there is now an even number of electoral votes, a tie is feasible. 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. WASHINGTON (AP) WHY IS IT THAT ONE CANDIDATE CAN WIN THE POPULAR VOTE BUT ANOTHER WINS THE ELECTORAL VOTE AND THUS THE PRESIDENCY? 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. Adam_Strukowski. Today, opinions on the future of the Electoral College range from protecting it as the basis of American democracy to abolishing it completely as an ineffective and obsolete system that may not accurately reflect the will of the people. By its very nature, the Electoral College system is confusing. 5. This feature is critical to the passionate bipartisan support the compact receives. The nations founders hoped to quell the formation of powerful factions and political parties, and they wanted a mechanism that did not rely solely on popular majorities or Congress. Without the popular vote bill, swing states would continue to get more leverage and attention from candidates to ensure that they would be able to capture their votes. In 2016, Hillary Clinton had more than 10 million of these votes, while Donald Trump had more than 8.3 million, even though Trump won 30 states and Clinton won 20 and the District of Columbia. Thats how the framers of the Constitution set it up. In U.S. history, the electoral college winner has failed to secure the popular vote 5 times. While we look further into the National Popular Vote, lets investigate some of its pro and cons for the American democracy. To determine the National Popular Vote winner, state election officials simply would tally the nationwide vote for president based on each states official results. Currently, 48 of the 50 states follow the winner-take-all rule. 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). The Electoral College system was established by Article II of the U.S. Constitution in 1788. Consequently, they decided that using the proxy votes of the well-informed electors would lessen the risk of tyranny of the majority, in which the voices of the minority are drowned out by those of the masses. Proposed Reforms to the Electoral College. The framers enacted the provisions relating to the Electoral College to allow for state innovation. It has been enacted by twelve states, which include Rhode Island, Vermont, Hawaii, the District of Columbia, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Washington, New Jersey, Illinois, New York, and California. Advantage: Encourages Voter Turnout Voters in spectator states, including five of the nations 10 most populous states (California, Texas, New York, Illinois, and New Jersey), and 12 of the 13 least populous states (all but New Hampshire) have no real incentive to go to the polls as their votes do not affect the outcome of the election. Although many supporters of the electoral college argue that a two-party political system is more stable, some critics counter that having more than two parties would give Americans more choice. Would they like to see the system changed? 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. According to the University of Missouri-Kansas City Law School, some proponents of the Electoral College argue that it isolates election problems, such as illegally extended voting hours or irregularly high voter turnout.