The Electoral College Also Makes Elections More Reliable and Secure

The Electoral College also makes elections more reliable and secure. Under a national popular vote system, a close election could require a nation-wide recount. If the raw vote total were all that mattered, vote fraud anywhere in the country could be decisive. With the Electoral College, a corrupt big city political machine can only steal a presidential election in the unlikely and unpredictable event that its state Electors become decisive to the electoral vote outcome.

In his Farewell Address, George Washington warned against attempts to change the Constitution based on “mere hypotheses and opinion,” and counseled that “experience is the surest standard” when considering constitutional changes—wise words that weigh heavily in favor of the Electoral College.