Episode 125 - Why We Need the Electoral College with Tara Ross
Governments hold elections to ensure representation for their citizens. And as citizens, it is also our responsibility to cast our votes on Election Day. The United States of America is about to choose the next President in November. However, before casting our votes, we should understand the mechanics by which our future leaders are chosen.
This is the first episode of a two-part series on the Electoral College and the way in which the President of the United States is elected. Tara Ross shares her insights and expertise about the Electoral College system and how it affects the election results. She also responds to some of the common criticisms of the Electoral College and compares it to other electoral systems worldwide.
Tune in to the podcast to understand how the Electoral College system works and why your vote matters!
About Tara Ross
Tara Ross is widely known for her expertise in the Electoral College. Aside from several speaking engagements nationwide, she is the author of Why We Need the Electoral College and We Elect a President: The Story of Our Electoral College.
Tara is also a retired lawyer and was a former Editor-In-Chief of Texas Review of Law and Politics. She currently lives in Dallas with her family.
To know more about Tara, you can visit her website.
Here are three reasons why you should listen to the full episode:
Gain a deeper understanding of how the next US President will be elected through the Electoral College system.
Discover why your vote counts.
Get a broader perspective on how candidates should approach the States to win the elections.
Resources
Why We Need the Electoral College by Tara Ross
We Elect a President: The Story of Our Electoral College by Tara Ross
Quora Discussion: Should the Electoral College be Abolished?
Quora Discussion: What is a Good Argument Against the Electoral College
What if we used electoral college to elect governors? by Nathan Nicholson
Related Episodes
Episode 92 on Ranked Choice Voting
Episode 72 on Voting Power
Episode 48 on Social Choice Theory
Episode 41 with David Pietrusza and Presidential Elections
Episode Highlights
Mechanics of the US Presidential Election
America has a two-part presidential election system.
The first part is what we assume as Election Day, wherein people from all 50 states and Washington all go out to vote. On this day, people are actually casting their ballots for a slate of electors to represent their state.
Many people are concerned about the identity of the electors.
The second part of the election is when the electors (Electoral College) meet to officially vote the next President.
It takes a majority of the electors for a candidate to win.
Background on the Election Process
Designed in 1787, the process allowed the votes from the small states to matter.
Founders initially thought that the electors would be more free than they are today.
Electoral Process Through the Years
The process allows enough flexibility in the methods used.
Throughout the years, you can see situations wherein some states decided to do something different from the national decision.
Listen to the full episode as Tara shares two instances where Virginia (1836) and Colorado (1876) did things differently.
Comparisons Between the Electoral College & Other Electoral Systems
Tara takes France’s electoral system as an example. Their general election could have over ten candidates, which significantly divides the votes.
The candidate choices upset the French people in the 2017 election, which led to the highest level of protest voting in recent years.
There’s nothing in that system that incentivizes coalition building.
Getting rid of the Electoral College would result in disunity and create a system where there’s no reason to come together.
Coalition Building
The current situation in the US is similar to the post Civil War period.
Coalition building allows voting variety among the nations.
Getting rid of the electoral system would leave America at a disadvantage.
Geographic Diversity
According to Prof. Judith Best, states are safe factions upon which to rely.
An unsafe faction has nothing holding them together except for one single cause.
States have enough similarities and dissimilarities, from various industries, jobs, people, cultures, and interests.
We need to find a way to force presidential candidates to pay attention to all of this because the president is the only person in the government expected to represent everyone in the country.
“My Vote Doesn't Count”
A voter may be discouraged when a state has decided whom to support.
Americans need to understand that by voting, they are not electing a president, but are choosing representative electors for their state.
Being on the losing side does not mean your vote did not count.
Do Not Take Any State for Granted
Safe states are called safe because they feel well-represented. Swing states, on the other hand, can be won by either party.
When a safe state stops being satisfied, they will let you know really fast, which was the case for Clinton in 2016.
States that feel ignored can switch sides.
“Not All Votes Are Equal in the Electoral College”
It is a common misconception that a purely democratic system is inherently fair.
The founders believe that the just process is having reasonable majority rule while minorities are not unnecessarily tyrannized.
Votes being equal are a utopian idea.
Suggested Changes
Tara does not support any changes to the electoral college.
One suggestion is vote automation instead of having real people as electors. However, Tara says people forget that emergencies can occur, which can lead to unfavorable situations.
Changing one aspect of the system can cause a negative domino effect.
Primaries discourage a coalition.
Tara believes that taking down the Electoral College system to the state level can be a good thing, especially in big states.
National Popular Vote Interstate Compact
Currently, 196 states have signed the contract, which stipulates that electoral votes will be given to the national popular vote no matter how the internal state elections go.
The contract goes into effect when they get 270 electors to sign it.
Questions regarding the constitutionality of the compact may be raised.
5 Powerful Quotes from This Episode
“If you are a presidential candidate, and you have to go around and you have to appeal to all these different parts of the country… You have to create some way to force presidential candidates to pay attention to all of this, because the president is the only person in the entire United States of America who is expected to represent all of us.”
“It goes back to an understanding of what this is—you're not voting for the president, you are voting for an official that's going to represent your state, the Presidential Elector.”
“Keep in mind what our Constitution is there for and what it asks us to do with our fellow states and our fellow Americans, and vote accordingly. I don't think we're really doing that right now. I think everybody is off in their little corner.”
“We are a country full of Americans with a shared history and a shared heritage that we have so much to be proud of, and we are instead just focused on our little petty gripes with each other.”
“We can listen to our fellow Americans respectfully without calling them names on social media, and try to figure out what it is that's driving the other perspective so that we can find the common ground.”
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To expanding perspectives,
Max
