If presidential elections were decided by popular vote instead of the Electoral College, Al Gore would have been elected president in 2000. How we choose a president profoundly impacts how campaigns are run, the importance of swing states and an election’s outcome. It’s certainly no surprise that the Electoral College vs. popular vote controversy has sparked considerable debate. As the issue surfaces heading into November, is it time to graduate from the Founding Father's Electoral College concept, or are popularity contests no way to choose a president?
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Increase Voter Turnout
- From Common Cause
By Common Cause - Holding Power Accountable
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A Popular Vote is a Real Vote!
I strongly agree! It’s time for each and every one of us to finally get our vote counted. Perhaps the Electoral College was the right system for the time, but systems must change with time. Communication and the distribution and flow of information in those days were slow and cumbersome. These days, things are radically different. Too many people feel – with good reason – that their votes do not really count. The time has come for a one person-one vote system. Many more people will vote when they honestly believe that their votes truly count.
- mellis
August 27, 2008 1:07PM
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Side: Popular Vote
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Why?
Can you explain, either with data or argument, why any of that is true? Communication difficulties was at best a minor reason for the creation of the Electoral College (see Farand's Records and The Federalist), so that change weighs little in the scale.
You point out a feeling that many people have, but do you know why they feel that way? Is there any evidence, for example, that people take a ballot and vote in some of the races but not the presidential race? That would substantiate your argument, but the data is exactly opposite: more people vote in the presidential race than farther down the ballot. If we were to adopt your reasoning, we would have to assume that people prefer an Electoral College system. Your argument, such as it is, suggests that we should have more Electoral College rather than less.
- Evergreen Freedom Foundation August 27, 2008 8:54PM
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