Electoral College: Keep or Scrap?

Is the current voting system in the United States of America, accurate, or even beneficial to 21st century Americans? Our current system is known as the Electoral College, where the majority of votes in a state decide the candidate who receives the state’s electoral votes. Each state has a limited number of electors with two Senators, but the minimum of electors is 3 as each state gets at least one House Representative, which is based on population. States receive electoral votes due to how many senators and house representatives they have, making votes count more and less in certain areas. The electoral collage is inaccurate and should be deleted and changed to popular vote. Two showcasing reasons would be that not all votes count the same, or at all, and third party candidates have no chance due to the Electoral College supporting the two party system.

Not all votes actually count, and even less count for much. The Electoral College has no reason for extra turnout as a 25% turnout reveals the same result as a 100% turnout. If the system were conducted by popular vote, there would be a greater voter turnout, as each vote would count and a sense of duty would appeal to all eligible voters. With the Electoral College, up to 49% of a state’s votes for a candidate might not count as the other candidate would have won. This undermines voter’s need to vote and makes them feel as if their vote will not be needed. Unfortunately, thousands of people feel this way, having a big impact on elections, as turnout would be extremely low. Using the 2000 election as an example, Al Gore won the popular vote but George Bush won the electoral vote even though Americans liked Al Gore better. The Electoral College tries to represent the one person, one vote rule, but it’s terribly inaccurate. In states such as California, one vote represents 1.6 people, and that includes children because there are not many eligible voters, and some of them don’t even vote. Due to the College, candidates only visit swing states like Ohio, Florida, and Pennsylvania as they are confident in the fact they have the other states summed up. Popular vote would result in the candidate(s) campaigning everywhere throughout the United States of America in order to get the most votes and ultimately, win a fair battle where every vote counts. With the current system, as stated in the article by Malcolm Gay “They realize their concerns are not being heard, begin to believe that their vote doesn’t matter and, come Election Day, stay home” (Pro’s and Con’s of the Electoral College). This is what happens when campaigns do not visit other states. Popular vote would increase campaigning across the country and boost turnout. American’s have the ability to vote, now let’s justify those means.