As of July 2020, a National Popular Vote bill has been signed into law in 16 states controlling a total of 196 electoral votes, including 4 small states, 8 medium-sized states, 3 big states (California, Illinois, and New York), and the District of Columbia. The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact is an agreement where states in the compact award all their electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote, no matter which presidential candidate wins in their state, says CU Boulder political scientist Ken Bickers. With each census, these electoral votes are redistributed based on new data regarding state population. Each state is allowed one elector for each of its Representatives and Senators in Congress. Longley, Robert. cons of the national popular vote plan By April 20, 2023 April 20, 2023 power bi if statement with multiple conditions on cons of the national popular vote plan 4. However, in the popular vote, Trump only received 62,984,825 votes against Hillary Clinton's 65,853,516 popular votes. Disadvantages of the NPV Interstate Compact. Since the Constitution and the Bill of Rights became governing documents in the United States, there have only been 17 amendments made to it. But . The electoral college encourages a two-party system and rewards candidates who have broad appeal. A total of 538 electoral votes are in play across all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Although its not detailed in the Constitution, each state delegation would vote on which candidate to support as a group, with the plurality carrying the day, said Akhil Reed Amar, a professor of law and political science at Yale University. The use of the Electoral College has been the only approach the U.S. has used to gain a President, but this way has generated numerous issues. 3. According to the University of Missouri-Kansas City Law School, some proponents of the Electoral College argue that it isolates election problems, such as illegally extended voting hours or irregularly high voter turnout. . The first problem it creates is the opportunity for the loser of the popular vote to win the electoral vote. Because of how the system is set up, it is possible for one candidate to win the popular vote and another to win the electoral vote. It would be a national mandate to put someone in office, even if that winning candidate received less than 50% of the vote. It would reduce diversity in the election structures. That effectively means that votes in the the 75% of the country that are in swing states effectively dont count at all. The aim of the National Popular Vote is to ensure the popular vote dictates the Electoral College results, making "every vote in every state" count. Prevents disputed outcomes ensuring a peaceful transition of power. When you cast your ballot, you're not actually voting directly for your favored presidential candidate. Constitutional Amendment to Guarantee the Right to Vote for All U.S. Citizens. PBS: What does voter turnout tell us about the 2016 election. Pennsylvania is tied between Republican and Democratic representatives, and Michigan has seven Democrats, six Republicans and one independent. Hence, the National Popular Vote plan is an interstate compact a type of state law authorized by the U.S. Constitution that enables states to enter into a legally enforceable, contractual obligation to undertake agreed joint actions, which may be delayed in implementation until a requisite number of states join in. Currently, the National Popular Vote bill has 172 electoral votes. The states that join the NPV Compact will not be able to certify their Electoral College Votes until all 50 states and DC certify their state popular votes and any mandated/requested recounts since the Compact state ECVs are dependent on the winner of the national popular vote and not just their own state popular votes. The one-vote approach does not align with the way the electoral votes operates. Because of how the system is set up, it is possible for one candidate to win the popular vote and another to win the electoral vote. By clicking Accept All Cookies, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. But with the NPV Compact a change in party control of just one or two states could restore the old system of electing the president and then four years later it could be changed back. An individuals vote doesnt make a difference when it is counted against the votes of the delegates in the House of Representatives and Senate. Idea to keep electoral college but add 102bvotes. The state legislatures of the cooperating states would . Adam_Strukowski. Not only it already happened five times, but in theory, a candidate could win the presidency with only 22% of the popular vote in a two-candidates race. Make a contribution to support Common Cause today. 8. The idea has public support, but faces a partisan divide, since Republicans currently benefit from the electoral clout of less populous, rural states. 1. It remains one of the most surprising facts about voting in the United States: While the popular vote elects members of Congress, mayors, governors, state legislators and even more obscure local officials, it does not determine the winner of the presidency, the highest office in the land. We answer more than 20,000 requests for information a year. I will explain that in another blog post. The United States has a representative democracy rather than a direct democracy: Citizens elect representatives rather than voting on each bill. Because there is now an even number of electoral votes, a tie is feasible. Home| Government| Elections| Electoral College| Electoral College Pros And Cons. Elections Webinar 1 2 3 . (They dont always do so.). Today, electors meet in their respective states on the first Monday after the second Wednesday of December Dec. 14 this year to cast separate ballots for president and vice president, with the candidates who receive a majority of votes being elected. In U.S. history, the electoral college winner has failed to secure the popular vote 5 times. People call them faithless electors. In 2016, seven electors 5 Democrats and 2 Republicans broke their promises to vote for their partys nominee, the most ever in history. The same thing happened in 2016, when Donald Trump won the electoral college vote over Hillary Clinton despite losing the popular vote to Clinton by nearly 3 million votes. While it has provided a stable and predictable framework for presidential elections, it has also produced several controversial outcomes. Security would be improved across the country. "Pros and cons of the Electoral College it said this about what supporters think about the electoral college "Naturally . Second, some believe itll intensify election problems, such as illegally extended voting hours or irregularly high voter turnout (Richards). If the presidential election were switched to the popular vote, then it would only take about 35% of the vote for a candidate to win. When a popular vote is held for a national office, the election becomes more about platform issues than local issues. For example: States already have the power to award their electors to the winner of the national popular vote, although this would be disadvantageous to the state that did so unless it was joined simultaneously by other states that represent a majority of electoral votes. In theory we could change how we elect our president every four years. Donald Trump won the presidential election by securing 304 electoral votes, compared to Hillary Clintons 227 electoral votes. In addition, while the Founders considered the electors as being free from any sinister bias in 1788, electors today are selected by the political parties and are usually pledged to vote for the partys candidate regardless of their own beliefs. With the polarization in global politics today, especially in the United States, a switch to the popular vote would likely increase costs even further. That could lead to a very bad situation where, instead of the people voting in November to determine who the next president is, one or two states could effectively decide who becomes the next president simply by joining or withdrawing from the NPV Compact and changing the rules on how the votes for president are counted in the next election. Following U.S. election results on a TV in a restaurant in Shanghai on Nov. 4. does not determine the winner of the presidency, Joseph R. Biden Jr. had earned 306 electoral votes, Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia, it is not a college in the modern educational sense, Kimberly Wehle, a professor at the University of Baltimore, on Nov. 3 backed membership in the compact. Going to the popular vote would eliminate this issue altogether. Thats a bank of about 14 million potential voters that reliably vote as a majority for Democratic candidates. In all states but Maine and Nebraska, the winner of each state will take all of that state's electoral votes. Electoral College. 2. 5 terms. Get breaking news and updates from Common Cause. A popular vote election takes all ballots that are cast, counts them, and declares the winner based on who received the most votes. The National Popular Vote would go into effect when states controlling 270a simple majorityof the total 538 electoral votes. This divide creates natural divisions between groups of people who both support their country, but in different ways. 4. That means every state is allowed a minimum of 3 electoral votes. Others may struggle to meet higher than expected voter turnout levels. (2021, February 17). For years there have been debates about abolishing the Electoral College entirely, with the 2016 election bringing the debate back to the surface. There are currently 538 electors, and to be elected, a candidate must get the votes of at least 270 electors. That would give the Compact states only 3 days( and two of those days were weekend days) to certify their state votes. The obvious reason to keep raising the debt ceiling is that it avoids defaulting on the nation's debts. Right now, the President of the United States is not elected by a popular vote. However, there are proposals to reform the Electoral College without abolishing it. If that was to take place, America could potentially face the same issues it is facing now. The only election in the United States which is not governed by the popular vote is the presidential election. Other presidents who lost the popular vote but won the presidency include John Quincy Adams and Rutherford B. Hayes in the elections of 1824 and 1876. NCSL conducts policy research in areas ranging from agriculture and budget and tax issues to education and health care to immigration and transportation. That means the cost of counting all the votes would be duplicated. Bush and Al Gore (Black). President Trump had earned 232 electoral votes. Every state is allocated several votes according to the number of senators and representatives in its U.S. Congressional delegation. NCSLs experts are here to answer your questions and give you unbiased, comprehensive information as soon as you need it on issues facing state legislatures. That would increase the amount of polarization being experienced in politics today because there would be less of a need to compromise. The states' approval of the compact is a victory for democracy and the principle of "one person, one vote." Some critics argue that more people would vote in a direct popular election, according to the University of the Pacific. Even though we will be able to elect the president by national popular vote using the The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, eventually the rules for how we elect the president should be an official part of the Constitution. Inside Ohio or Florida, to pick two examples, the big cities do not receive all the attention, and they certainly do not control the outcome. Under the current structure of presidential elections in the U.S., the states become a battleground of red states vs. blue states. ; Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. The National Popular Vote initiative transpired in 2006. In the 2016 election, only 58 percent of eligible voters went to the polls. Consequently, they decided that using the proxy votes of the well-informed electors would lessen the risk of tyranny of the majority, in which the voices of the minority are drowned out by those of the masses. (Until the ratification of the 12th Amendment in 1804, the candidate with the second-highest number of electoral votes became vice president.). National bonus plan. Although the 20th Amendment to the Constitution provides clarity to this situation, that process is based on the electoral college. The 102 extra electoral votes are calculated from allotting two votes for every state and for Washington, D.C. "Electoral College Pros and Cons." However, that support diverges widely based on political parties, with support from 89 percent of Democrats and only 23 percent of Republicans. Today, opinions on the future of the Electoral College range from protecting it as the basis of American democracy to abolishing it completely as an ineffective and obsolete system that may not accurately reflect the will of the people. Advantage: Encourages Voter Turnout According to the Constitution, the Electoral College is a compromise between election of the President by a vote in Congress and election of the President by a popular vote of qualified citizens (National Archives). Longley, Robert. BREAKING NEWS: Announcing the 2022 NAPA Top DC Advisor Teams. Another movement is attempting to convince states to split their electoral vote based on the percentage of the states popular vote for each candidate. But the biggest problem with changing how we elect our president using the NPV Compact is that its too easy to change it back. The total number of electoral votes assigned to each state varies depending on population, but each state has at least three, and the District of Columbia has had three electors since 1961. The first advantage allows for electoral votes to be fairer than the Electoral College (Richards). Would they like to see the system changed? Read the overview below to gain an understanding of the process and explore the previews of opinion articles that highlight diverging views on this voting system. [Add switching votes of losing party to the other partys voter totals in every state using the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system (except for 5 EC votes in Maine and Nebraska that are awarded proportionally instead of by Winner-Take-All.].
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