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In reply to the discussion: Dem introduces bills to eliminate electoral college, stop presidents from pardoning themselves [View all]Tactical Peek
(1,208 posts)7. One person, one vote.
What's not to like? That is democracy.
"Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time."
- Winston Churchill
There is no good reason today why one vote for President in Wyoming should count as much as four votes for President in Texas or California. That is not fair.
As President Jimmy Carter said in a letter to Congress in 1977:
My fourth recommendation is that the Congress adopt a Constitutional amendment to provide for direct popular election of the President. Such an amendment, which would abolish the Electoral College, will ensure that the candidate chosen by the voters actually becomes President. Under the Electoral College, it is always possible that the winner of the popular vote will not be elected. This has already happened in three elections, 1824, 1876, and 1888. In the last election, the result could have been changed by a small shift of votes in Ohio and Hawaii, despite a popular vote difference of 1.7 million. I do not recommend a Constitutional amendment lightly. I think the amendment process must be reserved for an issue of overriding governmental significance. But the method by which we elect our President is such an issue. I will not be proposing a specific direct election amendment. I prefer to allow the Congress to proceed with its work without the interruption of a new proposal.
We should have listened to Carter before the debacles of 2000 and 2016.
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Dem introduces bills to eliminate electoral college, stop presidents from pardoning themselves [View all]
Judi Lynn
Jan 2019
OP
Main problem with the EC is how some states lock them into voting whoever wins the state rather
cstanleytech
Jan 2019
#4
That what trump does, claim an overwhelming victory when he only won by 76000 votes. nt
oldsoftie
Jan 2019
#23
It IS working exactly as intended: to empower (rural) slave states despite their low populations.
lagomorph777
Jan 2019
#39
"We don't need an amendment." 2 yrs ago I might have agreed. In this nightmare administration...
mpcamb
Jan 2019
#43
Now you can add TWO MORE Pres elections to that list that Carter presented.....
Bengus81
Jan 2019
#22
The electoral needs to be abolished. It has allowed a minority to rule over the majority
onit2day
Jan 2019
#41
If a person get just 1 vote more than the opposition in each of the 11 largest states by population,
Cold War Spook
Jan 2019
#44