Of the 538 Electoral College votes available, Donald J. Trump received 304 votes, Hillary Clinton received 227 votes, and seven votes went to others: three for Colin Powell, one for Faith Spotted Eagle, one for John Kasich, one for Ron Paul, and one for Bernie Sanders). You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. The NPV movement seeks to create an unfair and unconstitutional system that diminishes the voting rights of citizens throughout the country and raises the prospect of increased voter fraud and. National Popular Vote Plan page 3 that non-member states that fail to hold such elections will not be included in the determination of 'the national popular vote winner.' This sidesteps the problem and provides an incentive for all states (non-members as well as members) to (continue to) hold such elections. On Dec. 22, 2016, the results were certified in all 50 states. National Popular Vote will create a single member district (all 50 states and D.C.), where the candidate with the most votes wins and . Either would provide a reason for both parties to compete in most states because there would be electors to win. On April 15, 2014 Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York State quietly signed into law the National Popular Vote, making New York the 10th state -- along with the District of Columbia -- to support this effort, while also boosting the total numbers to 165 of the 270 electoral votes needed to make a true national popular vote a reality. Under the current structure of the electoral college, the focus of a presidential campaign is on the so-called battleground states. Cons: Smaller states don't get as much of a say and people would demand a national recount National Bonus Plan Winner of popular vote gets extra 102 electoral votes Pros: No winner of popular vote losing overall Cons: Basically exactly like the Direct plan District Plan Win popular vote in each district, you get one electoral vote. It happened once, in 1876. The Congressional District method would allocate electoral votes based on the winner of each congressional district. If a party knows either that it can't win a single elector in a state or has an easy road to winning all of them, it sends its resources to where it has a competitive chance.. For example, if a candidate was very popular in New York City, Los Angeles and other large cities, she might not need to earn votes from other areas of the country. There are a number of pros for this method. How the US Electoral College System Works, Biography of Donald Trump, 45th President of the United States, What Is Statutory Law? Thats how politics works in America. Instead of a direct popular election, the United States has the Electoral College, a group of electors who represent each state's votes. Due to some states being heavily populated in comparison to others, that may help a candidate quickly obtain a win. That created a voter value of 2.85. Wyoming had just 3 electoral votes, but only had 255,000 voters as well. This was the intent of the Founding Fathers. NCSL conducts policy research in areas ranging from agriculture and budget and tax issues to education and health care to immigration and transportation. Many cities and school districts, under threat of a lawsuit by a Malibu attorney, have already adopted or are in the process of changing to district elections rather than remaining citywide or . Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. amazon web services address herndon va custom airbrush spray tan near me custom airbrush spray tan near me It is also true that no president since 1824 has received the votes of a majority of the eligible voters and 18 presidents, including Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Woodrow Wilson, Harry S. Truman, John. Advantages and Disadvantages of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact In the 2016 Presidential Election if the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact had been in effect the winner of the national popular vote, Hillary Clinton, would have become president instead of Donald Trump. Start and finish your paper with ease. (LogOut/ There would be a reduced need to build coalitions. That means the cost of counting all the votes would be duplicated. And unlike direct elections, either would provide an incentive for grass-roots activity, coalition building and enhanced citizen participation. This has occurred in 5 of the nation's 56 presidential elections, most recently in 2016. The winner would receive all of the compact states electoral votes, giving them at least the necessary 270 to win the White House. A popular vote system would significantly impact voters and turnout. Or the opposite could be true. How Many Electoral Votes Does a Candidate Need to Win? Now, the states are considering the National Popular Vote plan, a system that, while not doing away with the Electoral College system, would modify it to ensure that the candidate winning the national popular vote is ultimately elected president. Politicians would focus on fewer swing states (Bigger states more potential votes) The first advantage allows for electoral votes to be fairer than the Electoral College (Richards). All other votes cast for that candidate are therefore superfluous. Bosque de Palabras But the national popular vote plan doesn't require a . 7. That could lead to a very bad situation where, instead of the people voting in November to determine who the next president is, one or two states could effectively decide who becomes the next president simply by joining or withdrawing from the NPV Compact and changing the rules on how the votes for president are counted in the next election. Where the National Popular Vote Plan Stands. That's almost 1.5 billion . Each states electoral votes are tallied by Congress in the House chamber by House and Senate representatives on the 6th day of January following the Presidential election. 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. 8. By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. N.p., n.d. Although many supporters of the electoral college argue that a two-party political system is more stable, some critics counter that having more than two parties would give Americans more choice. The National Bonus Plan maintains the Electoral College voting system but adds 102 bonus electoral votes to the existing 538 votes. It sees a healthy and vibrant democracy needing the underpinnings of civil society that rests on the sustained and active engagement of the citizenry and promotes approaches that seek to maximize that involvement. 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 of the 2000 presidential election. The issue raised by the National Popular Vote campaign is fundamental: What kind of a democracy should America be? 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. In states with large population centers, individual voters have less power than voters in smaller states. A switch to the popular vote would eliminate the concept of a battleground state because the issue would be more on issues than states. If enacted by enough states, the National Popular Vote bill would guarantee the presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. On average, studies show that falls in line with historical averages showing around 60 percent of eligible voters casting a vote in presidential election years. Here are the Cons of the Electoral College 1. A popular vote election would bring the presidential election in line with the rest of the election structures. sale of united methodist church property. 5. Richards earned a master's degree at Carnegie Mellon University. The advantage of this system is that it preserves the preferences of. Because of the Winner-Take-All state laws candidates for president only campaign and spend their money in 12-13 swing states because voters in those few swing states determine who wins the election and presidential candidates totally ignore voters in the rest of the country(except to raise money). Removing this system could encourage more people to come out to support their candidate. It gives each vote an equal amount of power. The second advantage is that the all votes would be equally weighed (Richards). Longley, Robert. Their vote only counts at the local level, not the national level, because of the electoral votes. I will explain that in another blog post. It could help to reduce partisanship. The appeal of NPV is the simplicity of its message. With the polarization in global politics today, especially in the United States, a switch to the popular vote would likely increase costs even further. (2020, December 16). The winner-take-all rule is not required by the Constitution and was actually used by only three states in the nation's first presidential election in 1789. what connection type is known as "always on"? Just another site cons of the national popular vote plan . Would it aid a fight to eliminate first past the post or would it further entrench the established party system voters American voters have expressed disdain for. The electoral college encourages a two-party system and rewards candidates who have broad appeal. Others may struggle to meet higher than expected voter turnout levels. Here are six reasons why legislators should reject this attempt to jettison our electoral system: 1. Make a contribution to support Common Cause today. I fear that most, if not all, of the states signing onto the NPV Compact will be just blue states. The years-old effort is slowly making its way through state legislatures in hopes of changing the way "The National Popular Vote Plan." In Maine, both houses of the legislature passed the bill in 2019, but it failed at the final enactment step. A close election would trigger the need for a full recount. The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact is an agreement where states in the compact award all their electoral votes to the winner of the . Definition and Examples. 1. Unexpected emergencies would be difficult to handle. 4. Under the current structure of presidential elections in the U.S., the states become a battleground of red states vs. blue states. The method works by electing one elector within each congressional district by popular vote and selecting the remaining two electors by a statewide popular vote. In U.S. history, the electoral college winner has failed to secure the popular vote 5 times. During the 2012 elections, 38 states, also known as spectator states, were ignored and forgotten. The country thinks we are going to elect the president using the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system tans and then four months before the election we change to the National Popular Vote Compact system and elect the president by whoever gets the most popular votes. National Popular Vote compact pros and cons. When the Constitution was set in place in 1789, the U.S. elected its first president. Feb 25, 2023. 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. 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. Less would get done, which would affect the needs of households at the local level. How the National Popular Vote Plan Would Work. 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. In 6 Elections, 2 Near-Misses (2020, 2004) and 2 Second-Place Presidents (2016, 2000) National Popular Vote Has Been Enacted into Law in 16 Jurisdictions with 195 Electoral Votes. The states' approval of the compact is a victory for democracy and the principle of "one person, one vote." And thats not how it should be in a democracy. A popular vote election takes all ballots that are cast, counts them, and declares the winner based on who received the most votes. Under the Electoral College system, voters in states that are overwhelmingly in support of one candidate might feel like their vote is unimportant. The election is held every four years on the first Tuesday in November and prior to election day, the two candidates endure state-level primaries, caucuses, debates, and conventions. For example: States already have the power to award their electors to the winner of the national popular vote, although this would be disadvantageous to the state that did so unless it was joined simultaneously by other states that represent a majority of electoral votes. 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. Bush and Al Gore (Black). Post author: Post published: June 29, 2022 Post category: Uncategorized Post comments: paris apartment eiffel tower view for sale paris apartment eiffel tower view for sale Lincoln Chafee (D) made his state the latest to sign on. Although the 20th Amendment to the Constitution provides clarity to this situation, that process is based on the electoral college. This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. 6. But the biggest problem with changing how we elect our president using the NPV Compact is that its too easy to change it back. Published: Mar. Join the thousands across the country who instantly rally when there is a threat to our democracy. 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. The National Popular Vote stems from the winner-take-all approach that validates the presidential candidate interactions with only 4 out of 50 dates during their campaign. Each vote would affect each candidate instead of being overlooked due to which state those votes would be coming from. That structure makes it easier for extremist views to find official representation. In fact, let's tally up all the votes cast for president between 1932 and 2008. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz often split about 60% of the GOP vote, which allowed Donald Trump to win early primaries with 35% of the vote. The United States does not have direct election of its president, yet most national, state and local offices are filled by the candidate with the most votes. As of December 2020, the National Popular Vote bill has been adopted by 15 states and the District of Columbia, controlling 196 electoral votes: CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, HI, IL, MA, MD, NJ, NM, NY, OR, RI, VT, and WA. That means every state is allowed a minimum of 3 electoral votes. However, a popular vote system, although hard to implement, is a more purely democratic system than the Electoral College. 3. Under the system of proportional representation, any party with a high enough percentage of the vote will receive a seat in the government. Maine and Nebraska are the only two states that are not affected by this approach. Is this a solution to first past the post or is it merely reinforcing our current two party system? All other elections in the U.S. are through the popular vote. Some areas may bend the rules of an election by extending voting hours illegally. Lastly, the biggest problem that the Electoral College produces is the reality that a persons vote really doesnt matter (Black). In 2016, Gary Johnson received 4.48 million votes and 0 electoral votes, but the potential is always there for this to happen. Under the National Popular Vote plan,the compact would take effect only when enabling legislation has been enacted by states collectively possessing a majority of the electoral votes:270 of 538 total. The senators in the U.S. Senate make up two votes in addition to the votes that represent the number of its members in the U.S. House of Representatives (Archives). After all, is said and done, the candidate who attains the largest number of votes can still lose. For the popular vote, however, Hillary Clinton received 65.8 million votes, while Donald Trump received 62.9 million votes. 15 states and Washington, D.C. have joined the National Popular Vote compact. every decade states are redistricted could be redrawn to capture house seats and corrupt the Presidential election At the moment, 98 more electoral votes are needed to pass this bill in all 50 states (National Conference of State Legislators). cons of the national popular vote plan. During a popular vote, a candidate who withdraws from the race or dies before the election can be held could still be on the ballot. 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. District Plan CONS Technically still possible, but A LOT hard to do so District 1 = Romney 57% District 2 = Romney 52% District 3 = Romney 70% Gerrymandering. We have seen this outcome in the 2016 Presidential election between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump and in the 2000 election between George H.W. All states could adopt the system that now exists in Maine and Nebraska, where all but two electors are chosen by congressional district, and the other two go to the statewide winner. The use of the Electoral College has been the only approach the U.S. has used to gain a President, but this way has generated numerous issues. This would happen in the extremely unlikely situation where this candidate would win just for one vote in some . Ken Bickers. A close election would trigger the need for a full recount. The National Popular Vote Bill is a bill for Americans interested in both preserving our Electoral College and reforming the shortcomings of our current "winner-take-all" system that awards all the electors of one state to the candidate who wins in that particular state and . Analyzes how william c. kimberling, the deputy director of the federal election commission, is a credible author over the issue. There would be fewer opportunities to illegally alter the results of an election. For under its plan, the next time the U.S. has very close national vote, a recount would not be of six million votes in one state but of more than 130 million votes in all states and the District of Columbia, all with their own rules for conducting a recount. Instead, each state and Washington D.C. is assigned a certain number of electoral votes based on its population. ThoughtCo. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. After the process, the President of the Senate reveals who has officially been voted in as President and Vice President of the United States. A majority of 270 electoral votes is required to elect the president. In 2016, Florida had 29 electoral votes and 9.4 million voters, created a voter value of 0.72. However that presumably rare exception happened in the 2000 election when Florida could not complete their statewide recount in time for the Electoral College deadline and the Supreme Court forced Florida to use their first vote count without a statewide recount. This blog post is a joint effort with Leslie Francis, former executive director of the Democratic National Committee and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. To take effect, the National Popular Vote bill must be enacted by the state legislatures of states controlling a total of 270 electoral votes - a majority of the overall 538 electoral votes and the number currently required to elect a president. Advantage: Encourages Voter Turnout This type of system would give the individual voter a much more significant influence. on Advantages and Disadvantages of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, Follow All U.S. Citizens Should Vote. The only election in the United States which is not governed by the popular vote is the presidential election. Opines that the national popular vote plan is the wrong way to abolith the electoral college. There are alternatives to winner-take-all that do not involve abandoning the positive aspects of the Electoral College. Samploon is a database of free essay samples. For example, if a state used NPV and voted for candidate A, but candidate B received the most votes nationwide, the state would allocate its presidential electors to candidate B. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. It gives more voting power to individual voters in smaller states. long term rv parks norfolk, va, religious grotto designs,