Is it time to junk the electoral college?
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/12/15/art.swingcounties.jpg]
Jonathan Soros
Wall Street Journal
In his election-night victory speech, Barack Obama said he would be a president for all Americans, not just those who voted for him. But as a candidate he didn't campaign with equal vigor for every vote. Instead, he and John McCain devoted more than 98% of their television ad spending and campaign events to just 15 states which together make up about a third of the U.S. population.
Today, as the Electoral College votes are cast and counted state-by-state, we will be reminded why. It is the peculiar mechanics of that institution, designed for a different age, that leave us divided into red states, blue states and swing states. That needs to change.
The Electoral College was created in 1787 by a constitutional convention whose delegates were unconvinced that the election of the president could be entrusted to an unfiltered vote of the people, and were concerned about the division of power among the 13 states. It was antidemocratic by design.
Under the system, each state receives votes equal to the number of representatives it has in the House plus one for each of its senators. Less populated states are thus overrepresented. While this formula hasn't changed, it no longer makes a difference for the majority of states. Wyoming, with its three electoral votes, has no more influence over the selection of the president or on the positions taken by candidates than it would with one vote.
|
|
Filed under: 2008 Election • Barack Obama • John McCain • Voting • Voting issues |
About this Show:
Anderson Cooper goes beyond the headlines to tell stories from many points of view, so you can make up your own mind about the news. Tune in weeknights at 8 and 10 ET on CNN.
Questions or comments? Send an email
Want to know more? Go behind the scenes with AC361°
Subscribe to the podcast
On Twitter
Search the AC360 blog
Yes – get rid of it!!
Its past time to junk the electoral college. We outgrew it years ago and the election in 2000 proved that. I live in a RED state but I generally vote BLUE. It doesn't do me any good to vote because the majority of people in this state are going to vote for the GOP so I might as well stay home and not waste my time. If the electoral college was gone my vote along with any other Democrats in this state would finally count. That would be refreshing...and fair.
Annie Kate
Birmingham AL
YES, it is!
IF...... the Electoral College had been abolished, Al Gore would have been our 43rd President, instead of Bush!
Gore won the popular vote!
Popular vote is what should count!
HOPE TRUMPS FEAR & HATE.
I think that the electoral college should have been done away with long ago. There really is no need for it now. And it just makes us going out to vote not matter any how if they are going to vote any way that they want too regardless of what we say.
Now if the National Popular Vote compact was enacted and they had to cast a vote going with who won the popular vote in that state then I think that would be great. That would mean that our votes actually matter and count. I have often heard people say that they don't vote because their vote doesn't count because of the electoral college. So I think with the NPV compact that would get more people out to the polls.
Cindy..Ga.