cons of the national popular vote plan cons of the national popular vote plan

12 Proportional Representation Pros and Cons - Vittana.org 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. Lastly, the biggest problem that the Electoral College produces is the reality that a persons vote really doesnt matter (Black). That structure makes it easier for extremist views to find official representation. With the polarization in global politics today, especially in the United States, a switch to the popular vote would likely increase costs even further. It awards all the bonus votes to the winner of the popular vote. It gives each vote an equal amount of power. Before the 2016 election, the largest vote deficit in the popular vote was Al Gore securing over 500,000 votes more than George W. Bush. This has occurred in only four of the 58 presidential . The Pros and Cons of the Electoral College - SmartAsset 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. The Supreme Court has said in local and state elections voting should be based on the principle of one person one vote. These are the states that may go to either major party candidate in the election. As of December 2020, the bill has been fully adopted predominately by Democratic-majority blue states which delivered the 14 largest vote shares for Barack Obama in the 2012 Presidential Election. This is a situation that has caused controversy in the election years of of 1800, 1876, 1888, 2000 and 2016 when the elected president won the Electoral College and the presidency but did not win the popular vote. As with other powers entrusted to the states, it is an application, not a circumvention, of the Constitution when the states utilize those powers as they see fit. An electoral college would solve . 6. The National Popular Vote Plan to Bypass the Electoral College - ThoughtCo Lawmakers discuss plan to enact National Popular Vote in Michigan The NPV Interstate Compact does not eliminate the very complicated Electoral College system that most voters dont really understand. Like most issues involving politics, the U.S. Constitution is largely silent on the political issues of presidential elections. It could encourage voter turnout. Most recently, the bill was passed by a bipartisan 4016 vote in the Republican-controlled Arizona House, 2818 in Republican-controlled Oklahoma Senate, 574 in Republican-controlled New York Senate, and 3721 in Democratic-controlled Oregon House." 41 States (with 80% of U.S. population) will be Ignored in the 2024 Presidential Election. 1. Lincoln Chafee (D) made his state the latest to sign on. While we look further into the National Popular Vote, lets investigate some of its pro and cons for the American democracy. In a closely contested direct popular election, every precinct across the country might require close examination, rather than a handful of states or precincts. And thats not how it should be in a democracy. 1. In a direct popular election, a candidate could theoretically win without having broad support throughout the country. Would you like to get a custom essay? Or the opposite could be true. This brings us to 196 of the 270 (73%) electoral votes needed to activate the pact just 74 votes away. 3. Mayors, governors, and senators are all elected by a simple majority. It knows that a majoritarianism that produces a plurality is not the voice of a majority of the citizenry. What Is The District Plan? This Electoral College Reform - Bustle A simple change in the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact could fix the flaw and still provide the benefits of a popular election. By continuing well assume youre on board with our, https://samploon.com/electoral-college-and-national-popular-vote-pros-and-cons/, Select a writer from a large pool of experts. What would happen during a switch to the popular vote would be unknown. Analyzes how william c. kimberling, the deputy director of the federal election commission, is a credible author over the issue. Either would provide a reason for both parties to compete in most states because there would be electors to win. 15 states and Washington, D.C. have joined the National Popular Vote compact. https://www.thoughtco.com/the-national-popular-vote-plan-3322047 (accessed March 4, 2023). 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 . Under the electoral college system of voting, the number of representatives a state has in Congress (Senators and Representatives) is the total number of electoral votes it is allowed. The National Popular Vote plan is a bill passed by participating state legislatures agreeing that they will cast all of their electoral votes for the presidential candidate winning the nationwide popular vote. ThoughtCo. Longley, Robert. 1. 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. The Electoral College system - the way we really elect our president - has always had its detractors and lost even more public support after the 2016 election, when it became apparent that President-ElectDonald Trump might have lost the nationwide popular vote to Sec. Oklahoma voters weigh pros, cons of legalizing recreational marijuana It fails to reach the ideal of one-person one-vote. At that stage, anyone who received an electoral vote is eligible to become the next president. In the case of a tie, there are contingencies in place to determine which person will serve in the elected office. Under the electoral college system, the candidates which receive the most votes in each state (or district) receive its assigned electoral votes. More people live in urban regions, which means they would have a constant sway over the election. How about receiving a customized one? ashburnham school committee; its his baby now political cartoon meaning; softstar primal sawyer Once enacted, the participating states would cast all of their electoral votes for the presidential candidate winning the nationwide popular vote, thus ensuring that candidate the required 270 electoral votes. Evidence as to how a nationwide presidential campaign would be run can be found by examining the way presidential candidates currently campaign inside battleground states. And that would lead to chaos in how political parties campaign for president and could also undermine the legitimacy of the process. When a popular vote is held for a national office, the election becomes more about platform issues than local issues. The danger of NPV is that it will undermine the complex and vital underpinnings of American democracy. The principal flaw in the plan is its assumption that under the plan there will still be only two major parties competing for the presidency in 2020. . sale of united methodist church property. However, in the popular vote, Trump only received 62,984,825 votes against Hillary Clinton's 65,853,516 popular votes. National popular vote - frequently asked questions - Common Cause Majority supports changing Electoral College system for U.S 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. Our state will likely vote overwhelmingly for the Republican challenger to Barack Obama in November. Longley, Robert. Disadvantages of the NPV Interstate Compact. 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. 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. Currently, candidates focus more on swing and battleground states to help them gain those electoral votes. It seeks to be a bulwark against mass hysteria and the hysteria created by mass media. Feb 25, 2023. Watch out! The electoral college encourages a two-party system and rewards candidates who have broad appeal. That means some voters, like Republicans in California or Democrats in Mississippi, are voting without power and without attention from their preferred candidates each year. A switch to the popular vote would eliminate the concept of a battleground state because the issue would be more on issues than states. Then, election officials in all participating states would choose the electors sworn to support thepresidential candidate who received the largest number of popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. PDF The Direct Election Plan - tesd.net If the National Popular Vote bill was secured within the American government, it would protect every vote and would allow those votes to equally matter in the presidential election. The time to stop its momentum is now. There are pros and cons to both systems. It has been enacted into law in 11 states with 165 electoral votes, and will take effect when enacted by states with 105 more. Make a contribution to support Common Cause today. As a result, the bill will take effect when enacted by states possessing an additional 74 electoral votes. If a popular vote were allowed to declare a winner instead, it wouldnt be through a state-by-state counting of electoral votes. [Add switching votes of losing party to the other partys voter totals in every state using the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system (except for 5 EC votes in Maine and Nebraska that are awarded proportionally instead of by Winner-Take-All.]. For the popular vote, however, Hillary Clinton received 65.8 million votes, while Donald Trump received 62.9 million votes. It would reduce the influence of third parties on the U.S. presidential election. Only Nebraska and Maine do not. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. (2020, December 16). In the 2016 election, "swing states" that might vote Republican or Democrat like Wisconsin were targets of candidates Donald J. Trump and Hillary R. Clinton. The winner would receive one vote per congressional district won with the winner of the state popular vote gaining a two electoral votes. Even if states impose fines on faithless electors for their actions, it is not a guarantee that the behavior will stop. But if we set politics aside and focus on what is really best for democracy in our country in the long run I believe that the advantages of using the NPV compact to elect our president outweigh the disadvantages and the best way to elect our president in the 21st century is by direct popular vote using Ranked Choice Voting. PBS: What does voter turnout tell us about the 2016 election. In fact, the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which has now been adopted by 15 states and the District of Columbia, totaling 196 electoral votes, is an actionable and realistic . 1. This advance is referred to as the winner-take-all approach. Past Event - LWV Webinar on Popular Vote - The Buchanan Chronicle As of July 2020, a National Popular Vote bill has been signed into law in 16 states controlling a total of 196 electoral votes, including 4 small states, 8 medium-sized states, 3 big states (California, Illinois, and New York), and the District of Columbia. 6. National Popular Vote is a constitutional and practical way to implement nationwide popular election of the President a goal traditionally supported by an overwhelming majority of Americans. Heres how. The horror of a potential national recount is only one of the dangers direct presidential elections poses. Imagine a scenario where a presidential candidate focuses on Los Angeles, New York City, Portland, OR and Seattle. When the Constitution was set in place in 1789, the U.S. elected its first president. 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. A plan to enact the National Popular Vote was introduced in the Michigan Legislature on Wednesday. The appeal of NPV is the simplicity of its message. The NPVC is a proposed interstate compact in which the signatory states agree that they will appoint their presidential electors in accordance with the national popular vote rather than their own state electorate's vote. 5. This blog post is a joint effort with Leslie Francis, former executive director of the Democratic National Committee and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. cons of the national popular vote plan. A popular vote system would significantly impact voters and turnout. The issue raised by the National Popular Vote campaign is fundamental: What kind of a democracy should America be? Many of these states dont participate in campaign visits or get televised ads. cons of the national popular vote plan Advantages of the NPV Interstate Compact 1. Under the plan, Michigan's 15 Electoral . Advantage: Encourages Voter Turnout The appeal of NPV is the simplicity of its message. Is there a conservative case for National Popular Vote? Without any sort of broad support, the politics of the country could become even more fractured than they already are. The cost of a presidential election in the United States is already several billion dollars. A faithless elector in the United States is someone who casts an electoral ballot for someone other than the individuals to whom they are pledged. The National Popular Vote plan does not do away with the Electoral College system, an action that would require a constitutional amendment. And finally, the Electoral College doesnt work today anywhere near how the Founding Fathers intended it to work when they created it back in 1787. The National Popular Vote Plan. Electoral College Pros and Cons - ThoughtCo Weve already seen this issue take place with the GOP primaries in 2016. Proponents of the National Popular Vote fail to understand the most basic facts about the American presidential electoral system. The Electoral College was established in the Constitution to protect minority interests and mitigate the possibility of a regional candidate. 2. That would increase the amount of polarization being experienced in politics today because there would be less of a need to compromise. Even the minority party wouldnt be encouraged to negotiate because they could simply stall until the next election. 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. However, a popular vote system, although hard to implement, is a more purely democratic system than the Electoral College. Just another site cons of the national popular vote plan . Pros & Cons of Selecting Government Officials by Direct Election Yes. Here are the essential pros and cons of popular vote elections to examine. 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. on Advantages and Disadvantages of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, Follow All U.S. Citizens Should Vote. National Popular Vote (NPV) - InfluenceWatch It would reduce the threshold necessary to win the office. Presidential candidates have no reason to poll, visit, advertise, organize, or campaign in states that they cannot possibly win or lose; in 2016, 68% of presidential campaign visits took place in just six states. But in practice it could happen every 10 or 20 years when the Electoral College votes change because the congressional boundaries change with the new population census. There are a number of pros for this method. The alternative view of democracy is more complex; it is one that includes but is not limited to the pursuit of equality. 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. That's almost 1.5 billion . It is not at all clear that it would similarly prosper under the direct election regime being pushed by NPV. Is the National Popular Vote Plan Constitutional? In 2016, Hillary Clinton had more than 10 million of these votes, while Donald Trump had more than 8.3 million, even though Trump won 30 states and Clinton won 20 and the District of Columbia. The Electoral College is very undemocratic and riddled with issues. District Plan by Hannah Patzer - Prezi Colorado is on the verge of joining a nationwide movement that could eventually change how we choose the next president of the United States. NPV is more than a third of the way to its goal. This type of system would give the individual voter a much more significant influence. The popular vote eliminates this issue too. Currently, 48 of the 50 states follow the winner-take-all rule. Thats the way it has been in this country for a long time. Is this a solution to first past the post or is it merely reinforcing our current two party system? The first advantage allows for electoral votes to be fairer than the Electoral College (Richards). Should that happen, then the final decision of who gets to serve as President of the United States is taken away from individual voters. Definition and Examples. 5. It has its pros and cons though, many of which critics debate over. Poly Sci Final Flashcards | Quizlet In contrast, in a direct popular election, each vote matters equally. It isnt impossible to pass a Constitutional amendment, though history shows that it is not an easy process to complete. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. A candidate could be elected without the popular vote. Do you have information you want to share with HuffPost? And unlike direct elections, either would provide an incentive for grass-roots activity, coalition building and enhanced citizen participation. That effectively means that votes in the the 75% of the country that are in swing states effectively dont count at all. In each instance the republic has survived, and democracy has prospered despite the challenges presented. However, many people believe that a direct popular election is more democratic and fair than the Electoral College. Get breaking news and updates from Common Cause. Change). The United States has a representative democracy rather than a direct democracy: Citizens elect representatives rather than voting on each bill. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. (See: Electoral Votes by State). In 2004, for example, candidates George W. Bush and John Kerry campaigned heavily in states such as Nevada while ignoring political issues in New York, a state that Kerry was sure to win, according to the University of the Pacific. How the National Popular Vote Plan Would Work. To date, the bill has passed at least one legislative chamber in 9 states possessing 82 combined electoral votes: AR, AZ, ME, MI, MN, NC, NV, OK, and OR. Web. In states with large population centers, individual voters have less power than voters in smaller states. Ken Bickers. But for those people who feel that changing how we elect the president should only be done by constitutional amendment they will feel that using the NPV Compact will undermine the legitimacy of the process even though its perfectly legal and constitutional. Why National Popular Vote Would Be a Disaster for America (and NPV Two-thirds of the campaign events were in four states, Florida, Iowa, Virginia, and Ohio, that year. The Constitution specifically leaves details like how the electoral votes are cast up to the states. Gov Flashcards | Quizlet A candidate may not have to concentrate anymore, but they may have to move their attention to states such as Texas, New York, California, and Alaska. And thats not how it should be in a democracy. Steve Sisolak vetoed it. In 2016, Florida had 29 electoral votes and 9.4 million voters, created a voter value of 0.72. The Electoral College system, however imperfect, serves this broader view of democracy. 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. But with the NPV Compact a change in party control of just one or two states could restore the old system of electing the president and then four years later it could be changed back. It would eliminate superfluous votes. Because every vote is equal inside Ohio or Florida, presidential candidates avidly seek out voters in small, medium, and large towns. National Popular Vote compact pros and cons. 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. 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. Among the others: By its very size and scope, a national direct election will lead to nothing more than a national media campaign, which would propel the parties' media consultants to inflict upon the entire nation what has been heretofore limited to the so-called battleground states: an ever-escalating, distorted arms race of tit-for-tat unanswerable attack advertising polluting the airwaves, denigrating every candidate and eroding citizen faith in their leaders and the political process as a whole. Under the current structure of presidential elections in the U.S., the states become a battleground of red states vs. blue states. This move would ensure that the Presidency would be given to the candidate that received the most popular votes all 50 states and the District of Columbia. What Is the National Bonus Plan? - Reference.com - What's Your Question? HuffPost's top politics stories, straight to your inbox. PDF Problems With the National Popular Vote Plan A popular vote election would bring the presidential election in line with the rest of the election structures. Electoral College pros and cons: is popular vote better? - netivist Even though pre-election polls made conspicuous predictions of Hilary Clinton winning the presidency and . 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. In theory that could happen every four years. It is our national motto and is so for a reason. every decade states are redistricted could be redrawn to capture house seats and corrupt the Presidential election Why National Popular Vote Is a Bad Idea | HuffPost Latest News National Popular Vote will create a single member district (all 50 states and D.C.), where the candidate with the most votes wins and . Electoral College Alternatives: What Are the Other Options? - The Daily Dot Actually the NPV Compact doesnt change one word in he Constitution and in fact only changes state laws. Voters in spectator states, including five of the nations 10 most populous states (California, Texas, New York, Illinois, and New Jersey), and 12 of the 13 least populous states (all but New Hampshire) have no real incentive to go to the polls as their votes do not affect the outcome of the election. The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC) is an agreement among a group of U.S. states and the District of Columbia to award all their electoral votes to whichever presidential ticket wins the overall popular vote in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. If some of the 50 states and DC cannot certify their popular votes by the December deadline that could create a constitutional crisis where we would not have all of the state Electoral College votes certified by the time the Electoral College is required to vote according to the Constitution. 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. Robert Longley is a U.S. government and history expert with over 30 years of experience in municipal government and urban planning. Maryland and New Jersey passed this bill in 2007, Hawaii and Illinois in 2008, Washington in 2009, Massachusetts and the District of Columbia in 2010, California and Vermont in 2011, Rhode Island in 2013, New York in 2014 and Connecticut in 2018. Con:not Eliminate possibility that loser of the popular vote can still win the electoral vote The Proportional Plan A proposed reform where each presidential candidate would receive the percent of electoral votes that they win from each state Proportional Plan Pro:Possible for loser of popular vote to win presidency.