Potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidates are already talking about how they plan to unite America against Trump and defeat him at the polls. One obstacle that many of these Democrats seem to be ignoring is that in the past seven presidential elections, Republicans have won the popular vote only once, yet have won the presidential election three times thanks to the Electoral College system.
The founder fathers established the Electoral College system in order to balance the interests of higher population states and lower population states, as well as the interests of slave states and free states. How many electoral votes are allocated to each states depends on the census. Each states is given electoral votes equal to its U.S. Senators plus the number of representatives in its U.S. Congressional delegation.
Because every state gets two electoral votes for its two U.S. Senators, irrespective of its population, the votes in some states are worth more than the votes in other states. For example, in 2016, one vote in Wyoming was equivalent to approximately 3.64 votes in California.
The increasing mismatch between the winner of the Electoral College and the winner of the popular vote is the result of population shifts and changing political views in America. Recently, Republican presidential candidates have found appeal in low-population states and small swing states, while Democratic presidential candidates have found appeal in population rich states and big urban centers.
In the 2000 presidential election, George W. Bush won 271 electoral votes to 266 for Al Gore, despite Gore winning 537,000 more popular votes than Bush. Similarly, in the 2016 presidential election, Trump won 304 Electoral College votes to 227 for Clinton, despite Clinton winning almost 2.9 million more popular votes than Trump.
By allowing the votes of some Americans to count more than others, America is perpetuating a system that is inherently unfair, undemocratic and erodes faith in our election system. And while some point out that America was founded as a “republic” and not a “democracy” a key tenant of a “republic” is equality.
Perhaps rather surprising, back in 2012, Trump seemed to recognize the unfairness of the Electoral College system. Trump called for a “revolution” to protest the Electoral College, which he said made a “laughing stock out of our nation.” Trump said the Electoral College was a “disaster for a democracy” and a “total sham” and a “travesty.” Of course, like virtually every issue on which Trump has taken a stand, he now has a very different view of the Electoral College. In 2016, Trump called the Electoral College “genius.”
Regardless of how Trump feels, the Electoral College is antithetical to everything that America purports to stand for. The Presidency is the only office in America where one can win more votes and still lose. The Electoral College allows for someone chosen by a minority of voters to govern the majority who express desire for a different leader. When Democrats retake control of the Congress they must immediately move to correct this injustice and abolish the Electoral College.
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