The Electoral College. Is it Equal Representation Pros and Cons Free Essay Example, 1250 words

Electoral College In U. S. presidential elections, close races occasionally occur. The Electoral College is a mechanism, by which ties are nearly impossible, which if that should happen, the nation would have found itself in a predicament and heated controversy. This appears to be a complex solution to a simple problem, a redundancy to a simple popular vote, a one person one vote approach. Voters often question not only what the Electoral College is but also why it is. It seems to exist simply to amplify the margin of victory in the popular vote and is exclusively employed in presidential elections. Advocates of election reform wish to either do away with the Electoral College system completely and replace it with the direct popular vote or repairing perceived defects in the existing system by implementing one of several Electoral College reform proposals. This discussion addresses the perceived advantages and disadvantages of the system and provides a brief overview of the alternat ives. States that have a small population contend that if the electoral system were eradicated, presidential candidates would have no reason to campaign there or to advertise. We will write a custom essay sample on The Electoral College. Is it Equal Representation Pros and Cons or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now â€Å"Why visit a small state with a media market that reaches, say, 100,000 people, when a visit to a large state can put the candidate in touch with millions? † (Gregg, 2001). The McConnell Center for Political Leadership at the University of Louisville studied the rationale behind the public’s perception that a direct, one-person-one-vote system would be more equitable than the electoral system. The findings debunked popular perceptions that abolishing the current system of presidential elections would improve the process. Popular opinion is that if the 2000 election had been based on a national popular vote, the Florida debacle of hanging chads and dimpled ballots would not happened but in reality, the Electoral College saved the nation from a much worse problem. Imagine the distress of the nation in such a close election if a simple plurality of the national vote determined the outcome of the election. â€Å"With just a few hundr ed thousand votes separating the candidates, every vote in every precinct, in every state would have been worthy of a recount and every recount in every county subject to suit and countersuit† (Gregg, 2001). We still might not know who won. Opponents of the Electoral College argue for a direct national election, arguing that it would more represent the diversity of the nation.