I should be a fan of the Electoral College, right? It gives Maine more of a voice in picking the President. Yes, it does do that. But I still think it is wrong.
It is wrong because the choice for the President should be made by the people of this country, not some archaic and corrupt system that heavily favors whichever party is on top at the moment. Two of the last five Presidential elections were split decisions between the Power Cartels at the top and the people at the bottom.
We have Congress to represent our various state's interests nationally. The president should represent all the people and be elected by all the people. It is as simple as that.
I can understand the concern the Right has. They are in a constant state of panic that their sleazy stranglehold on American politics will come to an end. I, for one, look forward to that day.
There is a very active movement to abolish the Electoral College. The leading effort is The Popular Vote Interstate Compact. Essentially a state changes its rules regarding electoral voting so their electoral vote goes to whoever wins the popular vote nationwide. There are 11 States and the District of Columbia on board with 172 votes. Colorado's State Senate just passed a law to join in the effort. Now it is up to the Democrat controlled State House in Denver to make it law. This would bump the total to 120 electoral votes. The Compact would only go into effect when a definite majority had been attained.
The other big changes we should be making:
* Serious Campaign Finance Law changes. Too much power in the hands of the 1%.
*Gerrymandering outlawed and an equitable system set up that all states follow.
*Consistent voting rules that every state follows in National and State elections.
Keep it 'tween the ditches .......................................
3 comments:
Nullifying or eliminating the electoral college is a move small states should support. Right now most of the attention during the election season gets focused on the states with the most electoral college votes, like Texas and California. If the winner is determined by the results of the popular vote, however, any state, no matter how tiny, could be the one that gives the winner the edge he or she needs.
So we should just let four states hold elections - the remainder have no weight without the electoral system.
Boom civil war and dissolution of the union in less than three generations.
Nan- Good points. Living in Maine, I definitely feel like the ugly step child. It might be different if a candidate for President had to campaign everywhere to scrape up all the votes they can.
1138 - Representation of State's interests are covered by the national Congressional and Senatorial elections. The Electoral College only pertains to the Presidential Election. Explain to me how losing it will create Civil War? The President is supposed to represent "the People", not "The States". Maybe we should just stop having a Popular vote then. What's the point?
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