Electoral College

 

Running head: THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE AND ITS FUNCTION

The Electoral College and Its Function Spartak Goskolli Hodges University

POS2050 Professors Rogers July, 21, 2014

1

 

THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE AND ITS FUNCTION

2

Abstract This paper will describe the Electoral College and its function in the presidential role. The information that will be reviewed in this document includes why the Electoral College was created, when it was created, and how it functions. This document will also depict elections in which it made a massive difference in terms of Popular Vote versus Electoral College. The Electoral College is an important agreement within our nation and it has decided many man y debates in the past.

 

THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE AND ITS FUNCTION

3

The Electoral College and Its Function Many people in our nation wonder why we utilize the Electoral College to determine our  presidential elections for us, and why we do not go strictly by the popular vote. This document will describe the history of the Electoral College, why wh y we utilize the Electoral College as a way wa y to determine presidential elections, how the Electoral College works, as well as some key points in time that the Electoral College has made a big difference in the outcom outcomee of a presidential election. As we all know, the outcome of presidential elections can make or break a nation, making the Electoral College a key ke y factor for analysis in order to aid us in future elections. th

The origins of the Electoral College can be dated back to the ratification of the 12   amendment in 1804. The closest congress has ever been to amending the Electoral College since the ratification of the 12th amendment was during the 91st Congress in 1969-1971. H.J. Res.  proposed a direct election of a president and vice president which required a run off when a candidate did not receive more than forty percent of the vote. The proposal was passed at the House in 1969, but later failed to pass in Senate (Electoral College Fast Fac Facts, ts, n.d.). Many individuals wonder what would occur if there is a deadlock in the Electoral College, such as neither candidate receiving the vote majority. In such situations, a “contingent “con tingent election” is held which goes to the House of o f Representatives, where each delegate will vote for one candidate, and a vote is than collected co llected to determine the victor of the election (Electoral College Fast Facts, n.d.). The reason the Electoral College exists ex ists is because the framers of the U.S. Con Constitution stitution did not trust a direct democracy (The Reason Re ason for the Electoral College, n.d.). The Electoral College serves as an extra layer of protection against a gainst factions, which are groups of people who may violate others rights or would harm other citizens because they the y agree on certain sets of rules and rights (The Reason for the Electoral College, n.d.). Although the Electoral College is is very

 

THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE AND ITS FUNCTION

4

useful, many citizens today still feel that a strict democracy democrac y would be much better, but that can  be vary arguable and difficult to promote. The Electoral College is sometimes difficult to understand. In fact, if you were to ask a random citizen to describe how it functions, you would be surprised to hear that most people would not have a clue. clu e. Every four years citizens visit polls to select a candidate for President and Vice-President. The Presidential Candidate who attains the majority of the votes in a state wins that particular state’s electoral vote (Soni, 2012). The only difference being Nebraska and Maine, who’s electoral votes are proportionately assigned. This means that the candidate that wins the majority of votes wins two electoral votes, while the other 48 4 8 states remain a free-for-all (Soni, 2012). This brings about a very ver y important question. What where to happen if a candidate wins the popular vote, but loses the Electoral College? In this case, the candidate with the Electoral College votes wins. This has happened a few times in the past and will be discussed in the section to follow. Many Presidential candidates in the past have won popular vote, and lost eelectoral lectoral college, or vice versa. The most recent example was the election of this occurrence was in the year 2000 when Al Gore won the popular vote against George Bush, but lost the election based on Electoral College. After the Florida recounts, Bush’s votes totaled 271 to Gores 255. The first time this occurred was in 1824 when Andrew Jackson won the popular vote but received less than 50% of the electoral votes against John Quincy Adams. This also occurred in 187 1876 6 and 1888 with other presidential candidates (Presidential Election Facts, n.d.). As one can tell, without winning the Electoral College, a candidate cannot hope to become the President of the United States of America.

 

THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE AND ITS FUNCTION

5 th

In conclusion, the Electoral College came into play pla y when the ratification of the 12   amendment occurred. The Electoral College serves as a s a protective layer that protects the rights of the citizens, and many candidates who have won the popular vote have not been elected as President due to losing the Electoral College.

 

THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE AND ITS FUNCTION References Electoral College Fast Facts | US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives. (n.d.). Retrieved August 9, 2014. 201 4. http://history.house.gov/Institution/ElectoralCollege/Electoral-College/. Soni, J. (2012, November 6). What Is The Electoral College? How It Works And Why It Matters. Retrieved August 9, 2014. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/06/what-isthe-electoral-college_n_2078970.html. The Reason for the Electoral College. (n.d.). Retrieved August 9, 2014. http://www.factcheck.org/2008/02/the-reason-for-the-electoral-college/ Presidential Election Facts. (n.d.). Retrieved August 9, 2014. 2014 . http://www.history.com/topics/us presidents/presidential-election-facts.  presidents/presidential-electionfacts.

6