10-24-2011, 10:04 PM
davester wrote:
[quote=rjmacs]So, what is the fundamental failure of the Electoral College you wish to remedy? Personally i don't find the case of the 2000 election, by itself, to be a compelling argument for Constitutional amendment. As best i can tell, the Electoral College has generally reflected the will of the people in presidential contests.
The last two sentences are contradictory. The 2000 election clearly did not reflect the will of the majority of the people. The electoral system gave an inordinate amount of power to a small group of people in states with low population densities, enough power to control an election. There is no justification for that. That is a fundamental flaw in the electoral college.
I totally agree but would say it more flawed than that even. Under the current system, look at how much sway voters like Cuban Americans in Florida have. In the Gore election all it took was a very small event like the Elián González affair to make the vote close enough to flip Florida's Electoral votes to Bush. Because of the Electoral College and Florida being a close swing state, the relatively small number of Cuban Americans in Florida have a way, way more disproportionate say in who becomes president than someone living in California. That is a significant problem.