Robert Longley is a U.S. government and history expert with over 30 years of experience in municipal government and urban planning. However, in the popular vote, Trump only received 62,984,825 votes against Hillary Clinton's 65,853,516 popular votes. The United States has a representative democracy rather than a direct democracy: Citizens elect representatives rather than voting on each bill. Find the most comprehensive and complete 50-state information in NCSL's searchable bill tracking databases. In the 2016 election, only 58 percent of eligible voters went to the polls. Mr. Biden was leading in the popular vote, with more than 81 million votes. NCSL Child Welfare Fellows program is designed to support legislators and legislative staff who are experienced or emerging leaders in child welfare policy. What Happens if There Is a Tie in the Electoral College? 1. Gives too few states too much electoral power. University of Colorado Boulder Its the Electoral College, not the national popular vote, that determines who wins the presidency. While it has provided a stable and predictable framework for presidential elections, it has also produced several controversial outcomes. More attention is given to the swing states, such as Florida and Iowa, which causes the third problem the Electoral College can cause. The decision on vice president goes to the newly elected Senate, with each senator casting a vote. 5. Electoral College pros and cons: is popular vote better? - netivist 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. It did not change the outcome. Dont know what Ranked Choice Voting is? In theory we could change how we elect our president every four years. 8. What Is The District Plan? This Electoral College Reform - Bustle Each state is allowed one elector for each of its Representatives and Senators in Congress. Learn more about how the National Popular Vote compact works and the ways it could make our elections better for everyone. Instead, each state and Washington D.C. is assigned a certain number of electoral votes based on its population. That would increase the amount of polarization being experienced in politics today because there would be less of a need to compromise. Although this may limit the amount of diversity that occurs in office, and may generate extra financial costs, the argument could be made that these risks outweigh the results of an election where a majority of states, not a majority of people, put someone into office. Majority supports changing Electoral College system for U.S 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). 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 country thinks we are going to elect the president using the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system tans and then four months before the election we change to the National Popular Vote Compact system and elect the president by whoever gets the most popular votes. 7. Note: Today we are in a phase where the popular vote in presidential elections leans Democratic. 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. First, have students meet in small groups to discuss and debate. On a close popular vote, often defined as a difference of 0.5% or less in the tabulated results, an automatic recount would likely be triggered. Hence, the National Popular Vote plan is an interstate compact a type of state law authorized by the U.S. Constitution that enables states to enter into a legally enforceable, contractual obligation to undertake agreed joint actions, which may be delayed in implementation until a requisite number of states join in. Thus, the National Popular Vote plan will take effect when enacted by states controlling an additional 74 electoral votes. Even the minority party wouldnt be encouraged to negotiate because they could simply stall until the next election. 805 15th Street, NW, Suite 800 The second advantage is that the all votes would be equally weighed (Richards). 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. Common Cause Imagine a scenario where a presidential candidate focuses on Los Angeles, New York City, Portland, OR and Seattle. Ultimately, any disputes about the procedure could land everything in the Supreme Court. Electing a president who did not have broad regional support could lead to a fractured and less cohesive country, according to the Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. (2021, Jun 14). The same thing happened in 2000. Mayors, governors, and senators are all elected by a simple majority. That means every state is allowed a minimum of 3 electoral votes. If the election is based off a popular vote, each of these areas would need to be closely examined in real-time, which would enhance the security of each vote that is cast. Electoral College Pros and Cons. . Proposed Reforms to the Electoral College. Thats how the framers of the Constitution set it up. Many of these states dont participate in campaign visits or get televised ads. And that would lead to chaos in how political parties campaign for president and could also undermine the legitimacy of the process. That still faces an uphill climb, though. 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. All samples were added by students. Because its so hard to get an amendment to the Constitution passed that means that once it becomes law it will probably remain so for a long time because the bar to change it back is so high. The same thing happened in 2016, when Donald Trump won the electoral college vote over Hillary Clinton despite losing the popular vote to Clinton by nearly 3 million 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. Thats how politics works in America. 211 Next 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. In theory that could happen every four years. "Electoral College Pros and Cons." Elections Webinar 1 2 3 . To determine the National Popular Vote winner, state election officials simply would tally the nationwide vote for president based on each states official results. Hillary Clinton won the popular vote but Trump won the Electoral College. Probably the NPV Compact would be enacted into law with as little as a simple majority of the states and possibly even less. 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. Currently, 48 of the 50 states follow the winner-take-all rule. Following the unprecedented and volatile 2020 presidential race when the popular vote winner was clear on Election Night, but final results still took days it's never been more clear that the Electoral College needs a major overhaul. As the National Popular Vote (NPV) movement steps up its effort to impose a direct election for president, attempting to enlist states with a sufficient number of electors to constitute a majority (268) and to bind them to the winner of the national popular vote, those states considering the proposal might first reflect on the nightmare . Bush and Al Gore (Black). That means the bill needs 74 votes to reach a 270 majority, putting it into effect across the country . Here are the essential pros and cons of popular vote elections to examine. Everything You Need to Know About the National Popular Vote Interstate Some states replace electors and cancel their votes if they break their pledge. 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. 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. The Compact ensures that every vote, in every state, will matter in every presidential election. Others may struggle to meet higher than expected voter turnout levels. That created a voter value of 2.85. Electoral votes are designated among the states based on Census. 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. 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. cons of the national popular vote plan By April 20, 2023 April 20, 2023 power bi if statement with multiple conditions on cons of the national popular vote plan Other presidents who lost the popular vote but won the presidency include John Quincy Adams and Rutherford B. Hayes in the elections of 1824 and 1876. It was even a talking point among 2020 Democratic presidential candidates. The important number is 270. Although the 20th Amendment to the Constitution provides clarity to this situation, that process is based on the electoral college. The Associated Press explains in this five-part animation series. Lastly, an election-related case could find its way to the Supreme Court, which would lend greater importance to the judicial makeup of the court, Professor Wehle said. Constitutional Amendment to Guarantee the Right to Vote for All U.S. Citizens. There would be fewer opportunities to illegally alter the results of an election. Another movement is attempting to convince states to split their electoral vote based on the percentage of the states popular vote for each candidate. This advance is referred to as the winner-take-all approach. To pass an amendment to change the Constitution the Founding Fathers wisely required approval by 2/3 of both houses of Congress and 3/4 of the state legislatures instead of a simple majority. Because of the state Winner-Take-All rules, which arent even part of the Constitution, they can lead to presidential elections where the winner of the election doesnt have the most popular votes. Advantage: Encourages Voter Turnout As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Rural voters would almost always be in the minority. However, some critics argue that the advantages of a direct popular election including reflecting democratic principals, outweigh the disadvantages. 1. The Electoral College was born at the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. The Electoral College is very undemocratic and riddled with issues. The state legislatures of the cooperating states would . What are some of the main advantages and disadvantages of the Electoral College? The country could become less stable and divided if he or she did not have a vast amount of support (Richards). The electoral college encourages a two-party system and rewards candidates who have broad appeal.
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