Should Americans Use the Electoral College?

The Electoral College system should not be continued to elect the President of the United States because it is outdated, un-American, and unstable. First, The Electoral College ignores the will of the people and is contrary to the intent of the Framers. Every citizen’s vote should count the same in America, but that is not the reality. Whoever receives the most actual votes does not always win the election, yet America calls themselves a democracy. America’s Founders were worried about the popular vote when they wrote the Constitution because citizens in the 1700’s did not have access to information, and they were inclined to vote for someone from their own region. That is irrelevant today in the age of internet and tv. The Founders made the Electoral College because of outdated problems, which are irrelevant problems today so America should not continue to use a system that is outdated. Many people in favor of the Electoral College say that a popular vote would hurt rural areas, but people in rural areas would actually get an equal say to people in cities rather than giving them extra weight in the election. Also, with the easy dissemination of information today, it does not matter if candidates visit these regions. Second, The Electoral College discourages voter turnout and decreases interest in politics and government. Because people know that their vote is irrelevant in areas where they know the outcome of their state in the election will be blue or red, they feel that there is no point in their vote which then discourages them from actually voting. People would also care more about politics if they felt like they had a say. According to NPR, voter turnout is higher in the few undecided states. This shows that if people know that their vote matters, they will go up to the polls and vote. In the 2016 election, The California Trump voters and the Virginia Clinton voters knew their votes would not matter. This proves that when people feel that their voice is not being heard, they are less likely to vote. Therefore, America should have a system where everyone’s vote is counted equally and where people are not uninterested in voting because they know that their vote will matter. Finally, the Electoral College is unstable because it gives too much power to a small number of swing states. Modern presidential campaigns ignore almost all states in favor of a handful of closely divided states. The rest of the country is basically invisible, distorting politics, policy debates, and the distribution of federal funds. In 2016, all public campaign events were held in just six states. This is not only unfair to the majority of states that are being ignored, it is dangerous because there is too much power in a few states. The majority of states are getting no attention to their needs and wants, while the President is favoring the powerful swing states. Also, of the more than 120 million votes, the 2016 election was effectively decided by only 107,000 people in three swing states, while the popular vote favored the losing candidate by about three million votes. This further proves that many people’s votes do not matter, and that small swing states have too much power. It is not suited for modern times, discourages voter turnout, and is unfair to all people who feel that their vote does not matter, therefore the electoral college should be abolished.

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