The Electoral College (EC) has recently come to the forefront of United States political discussions due to the victory of president-elect Donald Trump, who lost the popular vote by two million votes but was still elected because of the EC. While the election raised many questions regarding polling and political predictions, Trump’s decisive EC victory has led to many across the U.S. fervently asking the question, “What is the point of holding democratic elections if the process is not, in fact, truly democratic?”
The scenario was similar in 2000: after Bush lost the popular vote and won by EC, many were calling for the elimination of the EC as archaic and unnecessary. Surely, many stated, a system started hundreds of years ago when the voting population was largely white male farmers needs to be revamped given modern-day voting technology and the 21st-century’s diversified electorate.
The EC should be abolished. The system is over 200 years old. It is outdated. It made more sense and was easier to manage in its infancy when the Union was smaller and the fact that most citizens couldn’t read or write let alone keep up with politics. But in today’s world where information is easily accessible, the concept of a wise elder voice because of whom very large swaths of the population are ignored because they cannot surpass a state’s majority party has become obsolete. There have been several instances when the voice of the people has not been heard. Each time the electoral college voted against the popular vote, the Democratic Party lost. Because of the Electoral college, the Republican Party now controls the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the Presidency. For many, this is good news and cause for celebration. For others, however, the sense of disenfranchisement is real and disheartening.
Similar to 2000, this current election underscores one of the most important dangers of the EC: it can undermine citizen acceptance of the election result. If some citizens feel that the system doesn’t adequately represent them, and it ends up selecting the president in spite of the popular vote, it can divide the nation. In 2000, there was a movement encouraging electors to dump Republican elect George Bush and instead vote for the popular vote winner, Democratic candidate Al Gore. There is now a movement encouraging Trump electors to do the same thing.
Although Clinton is discouraging possible “faithless electors” from voting against their state, and the prospect of electors changing the outcome is unlikely, the mere discussion of it can undermine citizens’ faith in democracy and further divide the nation after the election. In order for the EC to be abolished, there would have to be an amendment to the constitution. If we consider that women’s suffrage, the proclamation and cancellation of prohibition, the reconstruction amendment, and the abolishment of slavery all happened by constitutional amendment, it seems a little more likely that some very positive, very beneficial democratic change might be possible via this route.
The results of the election are not all that the EC affected. In fact, if it weren’t for the EC and “superdelegates,” Bernie Sanders would likely have become the Democratic nominee and would have given Trump a populist rival who would have been difficult, if not impossible, to beat.
Although defenders of the EC argue that it is the only part of the system getting politicians to pay attention to rural areas, this isn’t really true. Because rural areas make up an insignificant portion of the EC and vote largely based on reliable traditional party lines, politicians still tend to skip rural campaign stops. The electoral college, instead, encourages politicians to focus on select swing states, resulting in politicians campaigning too much less of the country than they would have to if the election were truly democratic. Furthermore, the EC tends to discourage citizens from voting. Too often are said the words “It doesn’t matter if I vote or not because the Electoral College won’t take into account my vote anyway.” This opinion is common for a reason. The whole point of the EC is to keep ignorant people from electing an unfit president. However, this time it did nothing but help the most unfit person attain the highest office in the land. It is clearly time to abolish the Electoral College and revert U.S. elections to the more democratic popular vote.