However, some critics argue that the advantages of a direct popular election including reflecting democratic principals, outweigh the disadvantages. Pros & Cons of a National Popular Vote Buy Complete Issue $19.95 Login or Subscribe The National Popular Vote How would the interstate compact work? There are alternatives to winner-take-all that do not involve abandoning the positive aspects of the Electoral College. Lastly, some Americans believe that there would be an increase in voter turn-out if people felt that their vote was viewed as a significant asset to their country. As a result, an agreement between a group of states to cast all of their electoral votes in a similar manner, as proposed by the National Popular Vote plan passes constitutional muster. The plan would not get rid of the Electoral College. These are the states that may go to either major party candidate in the election. That is hardly a mandate for governing, though it would be taken as such. Imperfect, because its modern-day blessings -- enhancing coalition building, pluralism, federalism and grass-roots participation -- are enjoyed only by a minority of states (in any given presidential election 18 or 20), where the battle for electoral votes is competitive for both major parties. That means the cost of counting all the votes would be duplicated. A close election would trigger the need for a full recount. 6. Under the plan, Michigan's 15 Electoral . Is this a solution to first past the post or is it merely reinforcing our current two party system? The only election in the United States which is not governed by the popular vote is the presidential election. "The National Popular Vote bill would guarantee the Presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in the entire U.S. Candidates feel these states need a little bit more of their attention and apply pressure to supply these states with solutions to their problems in order to gain their vote. Nevada passed the legislation in 2019, but Gov. A popular vote system would significantly impact voters and turnout. And finally, the Electoral College doesnt work today anywhere near how the Founding Fathers intended it to work when they created it back in 1787. Either would provide a reason for both parties to compete in most states because there would be electors to win. ThoughtCo. The popular vote eliminates this issue too. It gives more voting power to individual voters in smaller states. When you cast your ballot, you're not actually voting directly for your favored presidential candidate. Over the long run the countrys popular vote in presidential elections has roughly been equally split between Republican and Democratic.*. Privacy Policy. Many of these states dont participate in campaign visits or get televised ads. Many people may feel that any major change in how we elect the president should be in the Constitution and not in a legal loop hole even if its legal and technically constitutional. Change). It could help to reduce partisanship. evergreen funeral home live stream. But for those people who feel that changing how we elect the president should only be done by constitutional amendment they will feel that using the NPV Compact will undermine the legitimacy of the process even though its perfectly legal and constitutional. Cookie Notice When a popular vote is held for a national office, the election becomes more about platform issues than local issues. Since 2008, 15 states and the District of Columbia have passed laws to adopt the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC), which is an multi-state agreement to commit electors to. Richard F. Potthoff looks critically at a proposed alternative way of electing the US president, the National Popular Vote plan, where all states in an interstate compact which cover 270 or more electoral votes would cast their electoral votes for the candidate who won the nationwide vote, no matter who wins their state. Currently, 48 of the 50 states follow the winner-take-all rule. 2. Here are the Cons of the Electoral College 1. National Popular Vote is a constitutional and practical way to implement nationwide popular election of the President a goal traditionally supported by an overwhelming majority of Americans. When the Constitution was set in place in 1789, the U.S. elected its first president. If the National Popular Vote bill was secured within the American government, it would protect every vote and would allow those votes to equally matter in the presidential election. If you need to flag this entry as abusive. The selection of presidential electors is specifically entrusted to the states by the Constitution. NCSL conducts policy research in areas ranging from agriculture and budget and tax issues to education and health care to immigration and transportation. The framers enacted the provisions relating to the Electoral College to allow for state innovation. The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC) is an agreement among a group of U.S. states and the District of Columbia to award all their electoral votes to whichever presidential ticket wins the overall popular vote in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. In a closely contested direct popular election, every precinct across the country might require close examination, rather than a handful of states or precincts. Under the electoral college system of voting, the number of representatives a state has in Congress (Senators and Representatives) is the total number of electoral votes it is allowed. The bill has crossed paths with 36 legislative chambers and has been sponsored or voted for by 3,112 state legislators (National Popular Vote). Today, many electors are bound to vote according to their states' popular vote results, and those who aren't almost always do. Do you have information you want to share with HuffPost. Definition and Examples, Learn How Many Total Electoral Votes There Are. It would reduce the threshold necessary to win the office. Opines that the national popular vote plan is the wrong way to abolith the electoral college. If the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact becomes law it would be an excellent first step to help get a future amendment to the Constitution to replace the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system to elect the president with a national popular vote using Ranked Choice Voting. Lawmakers discuss plan to enact National Popular Vote in Michigan. There would be fewer opportunities to illegally alter the results of an election. Although it is sometimes conjectured that a national popular election would focus only on big cities, it is clear that this would not be the case. If a popular vote were allowed to declare a winner instead, it wouldnt be through a state-by-state counting of electoral votes. This move would ensure that the Presidency would be given to the candidate that received the most popular votes all 50 states and the District of Columbia. These battleground or swing states receive 7% more federal grants, twice as many presidential disaster declarations, more Superfund enforcement exemptions, and more No Child Left Behind law exemptions (National Popular Vote). Rural voters would almost always be in the minority. And that would undermine the legitimacy of the NPV among those people. 48 Vitosha Boulevard, ground floor, 1000, Sofia, Bulgaria, Samploon, Inc. 2022. The one-vote approach does not align with the way the electoral votes operates. A Critique of the National Popular Vote October 13, 2008 Policy Analysis No. 1. That means every state is allowed a minimum of 3 electoral votes. 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. After all, the Electoral College makes it possible that a candidate who wins the majority of the votes could still lose the election. The National Bonus Plan was proposed by historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. Their answer is simple: one in which every citizen's vote is equal to every other citizen's vote and one in which the winner of the presidential popular vote, no matter how small his or her percentage is of those who voted, would be elected. Over the years, the National Popular Vote bill has been introduced in the legislatures of all 50 states. Due to some states being heavily populated in comparison to others, that may help a candidate quickly obtain a win. This feature is critical to the passionate bipartisan support the compact receives. Today, the fact that Nebraska and Maine do not use the winner-take-all system serves as proof that modifying the Electoral College system, as proposed by the National Popular Vote plan is constitutional and does not require a constitutional amendment. Just another site cons of the national popular vote plan . All other elections in the U.S. are through the popular vote. List of the Cons of Proportional Representation. Disadvantages of the NPV Interstate Compact. a plan for a national popular vote could undermine the . At that stage, anyone who received an electoral vote is eligible to become the next president. The pros and cons of the popular vote structure of an election allow for the majority to have their say in who they wish to serve. But we're closer to that than you might think 15 states and the District of Columbia have already signed on, providing 196 electoral votes of the needed 270. Explains kimberling, william c., and dave leip's . The cost of a presidential election in the United States is already several billion dollars. (LogOut/ The second advantage is that the all votes would be equally weighed (Richards). Washington, DC 20005, Common Cause pays tribute to our leader, our friend, and a lifelong advocate for our democracy, Constitution, Courts & Other Democracy Issues, Ensure Fair Districts & Reflective Democracy, Expand Voting Rights & Election Integrity, Promote Free Speech & Accountability in Media, Protect the Constitution, Courts & Other Democracy Reforms. How the US Electoral College System Works, Biography of Donald Trump, 45th President of the United States, What Is Statutory Law? The National Popular Vote Plan. Under the electoral college system, the candidates which receive the most votes in each state (or district) receive its assigned electoral votes. Some areas may bend the rules of an election by extending voting hours illegally. This has occurred in only four of the 58 presidential . Like most issues involving politics, the U.S. Constitution is largely silent on the political issues of presidential elections. June 7, 2022 . Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. By continuing well assume youre on board with our, https://samploon.com/electoral-college-and-national-popular-vote-pros-and-cons/, Select a writer from a large pool of experts. As the National Popular Vote (NPV) movement steps up its effort to impose a direct election for president, attempting to enlist states with a sufficient number of electors to constitute a majority (268) and to bind them to the winner of the national popular vote, those states considering the proposal might first reflect on the nightmare aftermath Imagine a scenario where a presidential candidate focuses on Los Angeles, New York City, Portland, OR and Seattle. Published: Mar. In 2004, for example, candidates George W. Bush and John Kerry campaigned heavily in states such as Nevada while ignoring political issues in New York, a state that Kerry was sure to win, according to the University of the Pacific. Voters in spectator states, including five of the nations 10 most populous states (California, Texas, New York, Illinois, and New Jersey), and 12 of the 13 least populous states (all but New Hampshire) have no real incentive to go to the polls as their votes do not affect the outcome of the election. 3. 8. pros and cons." dave leip's atlas of u.s. presidential elections. . That principle should be expanded to presidential elections. In the U.S., that means people who lean Democratic live in urban areas, while people who lean Republican live in rural areas. This is a situation that has caused controversy in the election years of of 1800, 1876, 1888, 2000 and 2016 when the elected president won the Electoral College and the presidency but did not win the popular vote. The NPVIC is an agreement among states designed to guarantee election of the presidential candidate who wins the most popular votes in the 50 states and Washington, D.C. NPV is grounded in two powers delegated to states by the Constitution: the power to design rules for awarding their electoral votes and the power to enter into interstate Lastly, the biggest problem that the Electoral College produces is the reality that a persons vote really doesnt matter (Black). Moving to the popular vote structure would eliminate this potential issue. (LogOut/ Common Cause Also the NPV Compact allows states to withdraw from the compact as late as four months before an election. The states would implement this plan once enough states controlling 270 electoral votes have signed on, guaranteeing that the national popular vote winner will win the presidency.. Some states, such as California and Hawaii, both had their bills vetoed by their governors before it was overridden and enacted by state legislators. The cost of a presidential election in the United States is already several billion dollars. All other votes cast for that candidate are therefore superfluous. April 8, 2016 National popular vote far better than Electoral College system for choosing presidents, Stanford professors say. Even the minority party wouldnt be encouraged to negotiate because they could simply stall until the next election. Most recently, the bill was passed by a bipartisan 4016 vote in the Republican-controlled Arizona House, 2818 in Republican-controlled Oklahoma Senate, 574 in Republican-controlled New York Senate, and 3721 in Democratic-controlled Oregon House." The electoral requires that an election which does not receive a majority of electoral votes be taken into the U.S. House of Representatives. Is the National Popular Vote Plan Constitutional? It gives each vote an equal amount of power. In the early 19th century, many states ratified an approach that would allow the candidate with the most votes in that state to be the winner. 1. Constitutional Amendment to Guarantee the Right to Vote for All U.S. Citizens. At the moment, 98 more electoral votes are needed to pass this bill in all 50 states (National Conference of State Legislators). That view of democracy recognizes the existence and desirability of organized interests and enshrines that principle under the concept of pluralism. Removing this system could encourage more people to come out to support their candidate. F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush were elected with less than a majority of the votes cast. Menu burger Close thin Facebook Twitter Google plus Linked in Reddit Email arrow-right-sm arrow-right Loading Home Buying Calculators National Popular Vote proponents argue that the United States has had four presidential elections in which the plurality winner of the popular vote was not chosen as president.
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