It is true that the Framers mistrusted the Hoi Polloi when they invented the Electoral College to insure that men of reason and means chose the nation’s leader. It is equally true that this peculiar Institution has ingrained itself in the American ethos and is viewed as a safeguard protecting smaller states and their populace from the tyranny of the coastal elite.The tension between recognition of the popular will and protection of minority rights has preserved the Electoral College and prevented meaningful reform of the system.
One proposal that would perpetuate the Electoral College (and perhaps mollify its adherents) while giving truer meaning to the concept of “one man, one vote” and addressing the inequities of the present system, would be; award Electoral votes in proportion to the popular vote in a given state. By doing so, the votes of the losing side would no longer be disregarded as they now are under the winner take all approach.The benefits of such a modification would include a lessened likelihood that the loser of the popular vote will win office, the elimination of the existence of swing or battleground states, diminished need for court challenges and recounts and motivation for candidates to pay attention to voters in all, and not just a few key, states.
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