(2021, February 17). Breaking News: Biden Vetoes Congressional Resolution Blocking ESG Rule . 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. The official general election results indicate that Trump received 304 Electoral College votes and 46.09% of the popular vote (62,984,825 votes), and Hillary Clinton received 227 Electoral College votes and 48.18% of the popular vote (65,853,516 votes). Under the current structure of the electoral college, the focus of a presidential campaign is on the so-called battleground states. Ultimately, any disputes about the procedure could land everything in the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has said in local and state elections voting should be based on the principle of one person one vote. Although moving to a popular vote election would balance the weight of each vote, it would also create more sway in larger population states. Would they like to see the system changed? A special commission named by the House chose Hayes over Samuel J. Tilden, after 20 electoral votes in Florida, Louisiana and South Carolina were disputed. The National Association of Plan Advisors is a non-profit professional society. Whether electors should be able to change their positions has been heavily debated, so much so that the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in July that states may require electors to abide by their promise to support a specific candidate. 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? Longley, Robert. Its just like in tennis, he said. The amendment requires that any change to the rate of compensation for members of Congress can only take effect after a subsequent election in the House of Representatives. The second advantage is that the all votes would be equally weighed (Richards). 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. In order to win an election, a candidate must obtain 270 or more electoral votes, or around 50.2% of all votes. But with the NPV Compact a change in party control of just one or two states could restore the old system of electing the president and then four years later it could be changed back. That principle should be expanded to presidential elections. 8. National Archives:U.S. Electoral College. We answer more than 20,000 requests for information a year. NAPA Net Staff. 2023 by National Conference of State Legislatures, NCSL 50-State Searchable Bill Tracking Databases, Supreme Court to Reexamine Use of Civil Asset Forfeiture. 9. It remains one of the most surprising facts about voting in the United States: While the popular vote elects members of Congress, mayors, governors, state legislators and even more obscure local officials, it does not determine the winner of the presidency, the highest office in the land. 4 terms. Candidates feel they either cant win or lose with the votes from these states. Overview - Pros & Cons of the Electoral College - Digital Branch at 2. Although Al Gore won the popular vote, George W. Bush earned more electoral votes after a contested Florida recount and a Supreme Court decision. 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. In fact, part of a presidential candidates campaign strategy is drawing a map of states the candidate can and must win to gather 270 electoral votes. Constitutional Amendment to Guarantee the Right to Vote for All U.S. Citizens. 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. 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). popular vote pros and cons - sky-cover.co.uk That means the cost of counting all the votes would be duplicated. University of Colorado Boulder The allotment of the extra votes would almost always ensure that the person who wins the popular vote would also win the Electoral College. Under the Electoral College system, voters in states that are overwhelmingly in support of one candidate might feel like their vote is unimportant. Explain that Donald Trump won 304 electoral votes to Hillary Clintons 227. Pros And Cons Of Campaign Finance Reform - 640 Words | 123 Help Me That effectively means that votes in the the 75% of the country that are in swing states effectively dont count at all. For example, if a state used NPV and voted for candidate A, but candidate B received the most votes nationwide, the state would allocate its presidential electors to candidate B. The Electoral College was devised at the Constitutional Convention in 1787. If that was to take place, America could potentially face the same issues it is facing now. Change). 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. Unexpected emergencies would be difficult to handle. 5. 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. States boyd, william j.d., "electoral college system challenged." national civic review 55.9 (1966): 519-23. Mayors, governors, and senators are all elected by a simple majority. Majority supports changing Electoral College system for U.S All samples were added by students. The National Popular Vote Plan is an alternative system that would still use electors to cast their votes but instead it would give each state's votes to whichever candidate wins the national popular vote. (They dont always do so.). Its how many sets you win and not how many games or points you win. 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. Some states list electors names on the general election ballot. Definition and Examples. Over the long run the countrys popular vote in presidential elections has roughly been equally split between Republican and Democratic.*. That would increase the amount of polarization being experienced in politics today because there would be less of a need to compromise. Others may struggle to meet higher than expected voter turnout levels. Because of how the system is set up, it is possible for one candidate to win the popular vote and another to win the electoral vote. The Associated Press explains in this five-part animation series. PBS: What does voter turnout tell us about the 2016 election. (2021, Jun 14). They will do as promised if the candidates do a very good job vetting them and picking people who are rock-solid, Professor Amar said. 15 states and Washington, D.C. have joined the National Popular Vote compact. By adding this new interstate compact to the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system to elect our president we are in fact making this system even more complicated and even harder for the voters to understand. NCSL staff are prepared to visit your state to work with legislators and staff on almost any public policy issue or issue related to the management of a legislature. The Electoral College vs. Popular Vote Explained - The New York Times A proposal has been made to restore the one person one vote principle without having to change the Constitution which involves an interstate compact. Why National Popular Vote Is a Bad Idea | HuffPost Latest News Longley, Robert. As with other powers entrusted to the states, it is an application, not a circumvention, of the Constitution when the states utilize those powers as they see fit. This brings us to 196 of the 270 (73%) electoral votes needed to activate the pact just 74 votes away. WASHINGTON (AP) WHY IS IT THAT ONE CANDIDATE CAN WIN THE POPULAR VOTE BUT ANOTHER WINS THE ELECTORAL VOTE AND THUS THE PRESIDENCY? Thats the way it has been in this country for a long time. The itineraries of presidential candidates in battleground states (and their allocation of other campaign resources) demonstrate what every gubernatorial or senatorial candidate in every state already knows namely that when every vote matters, the campaign must be run in every part of the state. A close election would trigger the need for a full recount. It would require an Amendment in the U.S. for presidential elections. 3. 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. Pros and Cons of The U.S. Electoral College - National Popular Vote After all, the Electoral College makes it possible that a candidate who wins the majority of the votes could still lose the election. 6. However, in the popular vote, Trump only received 62,984,825 votes against Hillary Clinton's 65,853,516 popular votes. Many people may feel that any major change in how we elect the president should be in the Constitution and not in a legal loop hole even if its legal and technically constitutional. For years there have been debates about abolishing the Electoral College entirely, with the 2016 election bringing the debate back to the surface. In a direct popular election, a candidate could theoretically win without having broad support throughout the country. That still faces an uphill climb, though. Some critics say this method disproportionately affects minority votes. After the 2000 election, a majority of Americans favored . A popular vote election would bring the presidential election in line with the rest of the election structures. 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). I will explain that in another blog post. Critics, however, argue that Founders reasoning is no longer relevant as todays voters are better-educated and have virtually unlimited access to information and to the candidates stances on the issues. What did they learn about the American system of electing the president from these elections? Pros: Gives the smaller states an equal voice. This feature is critical to the passionate bipartisan support the compact receives. All other elections in the U.S. are through the popular vote. If you need 321 electoral votes to win, and you can get 102 by winning the national 354 popular plurality, you need only 219 of the state electoral votes. Advantages and Disadvantages of the National Popular Vote Interstate Some hope to reduce the Electoral Colleges importance without an amendment. Discuss. The proportional plan retains electoral votes, but awards the votes in each state based on the percentage of votes received in each state (regardless of the districts from which the voters come) by the competing . Dont know what Ranked Choice Voting is? It only takes five people with life tenure to actually amend this Constitution through a judicial opinion, she said. The first advantage allows for electoral votes to be fairer than the Electoral College (Richards). Currently, the National Popular Vote bill has 172 electoral votes. Because of how the system is set up, it is possible for one candidate to win the popular vote and another to win the electoral vote. The Pros and Cons of Pooled Employer Plans: Debate. There are arguments that the states with smaller populations are overrepresented in the Electoral College, because every state gets at least 3 electors regardless of population. Rural voters would almost always be in the minority. In the U.S., that means people who lean Democratic live in urban areas, while people who lean Republican live in rural areas. Right now, the President of the United States is not elected by a popular vote. The Electoral College was born at the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. According to the Constitution, the Electoral College is a compromise between election of the President by a vote in Congress and election of the President by a popular vote of qualified citizens (National Archives). The National Popular Vote plan would eliminate what critics of the Electoral College system point to as the "winner-take-all" rule - the awarding all of a state's electoral votes to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in that state. Additionally, the Founders reasoned that the system would prevent states with larger populations from having an unequal influence on the election. Wyoming had just 3 electoral votes, but only had 255,000 voters as well. The Electoral College system has been a topic of debate for many years. 7. It could help to reduce partisanship. These are the states that may go to either major party candidate in the election. 6. To avoid another election that differs from . The local laws would take effect only once the compact has enough states to total 270 electoral votes. In 2016, Gary Johnson received 4.48 million votes and 0 electoral votes, but the potential is always there for this to happen. It happened once, in 1876. However, some critics argue that the advantages of a direct popular election including reflecting democratic principals, outweigh the disadvantages. 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. Lastly, the biggest problem that the Electoral College produces is the reality that a persons vote really doesnt matter (Black). After students have completed their handouts, have them debate the pros and cons of the Electoral College. Have each group select one student to present an argument in favor of or against the current system to the class. Samploon is a database of free essay samples. What Is The District Plan? This Electoral College Reform - Bustle That means the bill needs 74 votes to reach a 270 majority, putting it into effect across the country . The National Popular Vote would go into effect when states controlling 270a simple majorityof the total 538 electoral votes. On average, studies show that falls in line with historical averages showing around 60 percent of eligible voters casting a vote in presidential election years. In 2016, for instance, Democrat Hillary Clinton received nearly 2.9 million more votes than Trump in the presidential election, after racking up more lopsided wins in big states like New York and California. Find the most comprehensive and complete 50-state information in NCSL's searchable bill tracking databases. That could change on Nov. 3 of course, because all House seats are up for election. Imagine a scenario where a presidential candidate focuses on Los Angeles, New York City, Portland, OR and Seattle. At a time of little national identity and competition among the states, there were concerns that people would favor their regional candidates and that big states with denser populations would dominate the vote. The Electoral College has 538 members, with the number allocated to each state based on how many representatives it has in the House plus its two senators. National popular vote plan. What can your students conclude? This would happen in the extremely unlikely situation where this candidate would win just for one vote in some . Presidential candidates have no reason to poll, visit, advertise, organize, or campaign in states that they cannot possibly win or lose; in 2016, 68% of presidential campaign visits took place in just six states. Reduces voter participation by creating a "my vote doesn't matter" feeling. 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. 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. 1. 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. However that presumably rare exception happened in the 2000 election when Florida could not complete their statewide recount in time for the Electoral College deadline and the Supreme Court forced Florida to use their first vote count without a statewide recount. In theory we could change how we elect our president every four years. The system had some unusual results from the start, as evident in the election of 1800, a tie in which Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr received an equal number of electoral votes. Every state is allocated several votes according to the number of senators and representatives in its U.S. Congressional delegation. 4. More attention is given to the swing states, such as Florida and Iowa, which causes the third problem the Electoral College can cause. The Electoral College system, long a source of controversy, came under especially heavy criticism after the 2016 presidential election when Republican Donald Trump lost the nationwide popular vote to Democrat Hillary Clinton by over 2.8 million votes but won the Electoral Collegeand thus the presidencyby 74 electoral votes. Certain penalties exist in other states. 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. 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. However, that support diverges widely based on political parties, with support from 89 percent of Democrats and only 23 percent of Republicans. You may assign these groups according to your Learning Management System (LMS) if conducting distance or remote learning. 5. 2. Today, electors meet in their respective states on the first Monday after the second Wednesday of December Dec. 14 this year to cast separate ballots for president and vice president, with the candidates who receive a majority of votes being elected. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. High Credit Score Borrowers Penalized Under New Federal Mortgage Fee Plan After the process, the President of the Senate reveals who has officially been voted in as President and Vice President of the United States. Currently, candidates focus more on swing and battleground states to help them gain those electoral votes. ThoughtCo, Feb. 17, 2021, thoughtco.com/electoral-college-pros-and-cons-4686409. And that would lead to chaos in how political parties campaign for president and could also undermine the legitimacy of the process. Currently, 48 of the 50 states follow the winner-take-all rule. The electoral college is a group of electors, outlined and defined in the United States Constitution, established for the purpose of electing the president and vice-president. "Electoral College Pros and Cons."
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national popular vote plan pros and cons