The Electoral College Problem
By D. S. Mitchell
Losing While Winning
I believe whoever wins the most popular votes should become president of the United States. Unfortunately, with the Electoral College system that is not what happens. Twice in the last five elections the candidate that became president of the United States lost the popular vote. Donald Trump, won by less than 80,000 votes in four key electoral college states. He simultaneously lost the national popular vote by nearly 3 million votes.
The GOP Solution
The Electoral College system has become a tool for the Republicans in their effort to lock in one party control of government. Elie Mystal in a recent editorial in The Nation magazine wrote the GOP solution to changing demographics is to “forge a new theory of government where the rule by a white minority can withstand the popular will”. The nature of that effort was clear during Trump’s recent impeachment trial. Republicans desperate to acquit Trump wrapped their arms around a group of discredited legal theories. The Senators embraced a view of executive power and privilege, that ultimately denies our democracy and anoints a king.
The Strategy Is Clear
It is clear that suppression of the vote is essential to the Republican plan. They expect through purges of voting rolls and gerrymandered districts they can keep power. Republicans protect and extol the Electoral College. Elie Mystal continued,“The Electoral College functions to elevate the voting power of white citizens in low population states over the will of popular majorities”. Under the absurd theories laid out by Trump’s Republican defenders at his impeachment trial he could not be impeached for abuse of power-but any Democrat could be. A mind-blowing sentiment and a mounting danger to our democracy.
Trump Foreign Allies
By the end of the faux trial it became clear that if Trump and Putin fail in their effort to steal the 2020 election the Republicans will attempt to impeach the Democratic victor. Much of the Republican plan depends on the power of the Electoral College to wrest victory from the Democrats. We as guardians of our democracy must take action. There are efforts afoot to end the broken Electoral College system. This effort can only be successful if a majority of the states pass the National Popular Vote Compact.
Historical Perspective
In the current Electoral College system, the presidency is given to the candidate who wins no less than 270 of the 538 available electoral votes. The U.S. Constitution gives state legislatures the power to choose how presidential electors are chosen. Since the 1800’s, each state (with the exceptions of Maine and Nebraska) has awarded its electoral votes to the winner of the popular vote in that state.
What is the NPV?
What is the National Popular Vote Compact? Under the NPV system, states and the District of Columbia commit to award their electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote instead of the state winner. Such a system would guarantee the presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all fifty states and the District of Columbia. This effort requires the commitment of enough states to meet the 270 combined electors-a majority-to agree to the new system.
One Person, One vote
There is some growing optimism that such a commitment is within reach. As of this writing fifteen states and D.C. have committed to the NPV plan. The electors from those fifteen states total 196. Remember 270 electors are needed. Furthermore, there are at least nine states where the bill has passed both chambers and is awaiting further action.
Conservative Control
Approval of the Compact would be a victory for democracy and the principle of “one person, one vote.” The NPV is in direct opposition however to the Republican plan to stay in power forever. The conservative control of government is structural and fundamental with the Electoral College at its heart.
Action Over Anger
It is easy to become frustrated and angry knowing that Donald Trump actually “lost” the election. Despite his popular vote loss Trump is the one sitting in the White House, not Hillary. It quickly became clear, Trump is not only temperamentally unfit to hold the job, but corrupt as well. Trump’s Twitter attacks on everyone from a dead senator to a Gold Star family is not just shameful, it is alarming. He alone is responsible for the longest government shut down in history.
Suspicion Looms
Trump’s refusal to show his tax returns or divest himself of his properties created a cloud of suspicion over the decisions he is making as president. John Bolton, a man who should know, made it clear in a recent speech that Trump acquiesced to President Erdogan on Kurdish issues because of his personal investments in Turkey.
Ethics Act
Every president since Nixon has released his income tax returns to the public. Additionally, every president elected since the 1978 Ethics in Government Act has placed assets in a blind trust or limited them to non-conflicting investments such as mutual funds. Trump’s rigorous legal battle to maintain financial secrecy has been in the courts since soon after his election.
Action Required
We must reform the anti-democratic way we choose the president. The outdated and undemocratic, “winner take all” Electoral College system must be corrected so that voters in all fifty states have a real say in choosing our presidents. Let’s never again allow a person of Donald Trump’s corrupt character to become president without at least winning the popular vote.
It Can Work
The U.S. Constitution says nothing about how states must award their electors-and that is why the National Popular Vote Compact is a plan that can work. The NPV will have the same effect as a constitutional amendment to abolish the Electoral College. If the NPV is passed by enough states, members of the Electoral College will vote for the winner of the popular vote for all 50 states.
A Dramatic Reshaping
Passage of the National Popular Vote Compact has the potential to dramatically reshape our country. Hopefully, it will force candidates to spend time engaging with voters nationwide instead of a handful of swing states. Such action has the potential to rebuild American’s trust in our government. It is vital to show the will of the majority is operating unhampered and unfettered.
A Few Obvious Advantages
Equality: Every vote is of equal value. The one man, one vote principle is essential to a flourishing democracy.Fairness: biggest vote getter wins the election. Constitutional: Because the Constitution clearly entrusts the choice of presidential electors specifically to the states.
Call The Governor
First, discuss the failure of the Electoral College to protect democracy and how we can fix it, with anyone who will listen. Second, call the office of the governor in the following states: Montana, Arizona, Michigan, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Virginia, North Carolina and Maine, and urge every governor to sign the legislation this year prior to the 2020 election. Support for pro-democratic Electoral College reform is wide-spread. Political action groups including League of Women Voters, ACLU, Common Cause and Sierra Club support the measure.
Our Time
I recently heard a television pundit declare this to be “our time”. In many ways that is correct. It is our time to demand equality at the voting box. The very democracy that we hold dear is on the verge of collapse. If we are to save our basic freedoms we must generate a voter turn out of Titanic proportions. A massive voter turnout, gargantuan enough to bury the Republican dream of single party rule. I am dreaming of a blue wave in 2020. Democrats are working for a more equitable voting system by fixing the broken Electoral College. Join the fight by donating money and time to organizations lobbying for the National Popular Vote Compact.
**If you found this article interesting you might want to read more about the Electoral College and its effect on American elections.
