Essay On Electoral College

Redistricting has been a cause of debate for many years in the United States. The process of manipulating the boundaries of voting districts for party or class gain is as old as our nation. In 1788, Gerrymandering was already being used by Patrick Henry to put James Madison at a disadvantage in the race for presidency (Barasch). Although certain rules are in place – like how districts must be contiguous and and compact – there is little said about the actual process of redistricting in the constitution, which is why redistricting has been taken so wildly out of its constitutional context through the centuries. Many states and activist groups have tried to reform the redistricting process, but only twenty-one states utilize a non-partisan commission

However, despite legal oversight, a number of electors have violated their state 's law binding them to their pledged vote and often only being charged with a really small fine, usually $1,000. According to the constitutional scholars, electors remain free agents despite state laws and that, if challenged, such laws would be ruled unconstitutional. Therefore, electors can decline to cast their vote for a specific candidate (the one that wins the popular vote of their state), either voting for an alternative candidate, or abstaining completely. In fact, in the 2000 election, Barbara Lett-Simmons, an elector for the District of Columbia, cast a blank ballot for president and vice president in protest of the District 's unfair voting rights . In other words, electors are ultimately free to vote for whom they personally prefer, despite the general public 's

I feel the voting age limit should stay the same , i feel its best for our country. A lot of young people dont show interest in the presidental election like the older citizens do. Young people dont have enough knowledge to be able to vote , wich will make a big change for our country. Also, the low participation of young voters shows lack of civic responsibility. At the age of 16, they aren 't really wooried about the presidental election to vote.

Having positive values can make a difference in today’s world just like it did in the movie “Freedom Writers”, if everybody unites as one. The Presidential election is a prime example of how our society needs positive influences to help stabilize our country. While it is often the case that the presidential candidates talk poorly about their opponents, this year’s election period was particularly cruel and nasty. The presidential candidates, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton used negative messages to divide the country as well as creating fear about a variety of racial issues and religious beliefs. Both candidates focused on the negative and did little to highlight their own agendas and plans if they became president.

Taft lacked Roosevelt’s views on presidential power and this held him back from being a stronger leader while in office. Taft’s debate over tariff reform legislation caused the Republican Party to split and led to the passage of the Payne-Aldrich Act, the Act raised certain tariffs on goods entering the United States. (History.com, 2018). Although Taft won the election easily due to Roosevelt’s help, but he struggled with presidential power. William Howard Taft created a “policy of harmony” with Congress.

Is Gerrymandering a Controversial Topic? Gerrymandering is a process where the ruling political party uses the map of their state to draw lines that create voting districts in favor of their party. The result of this is that it doesn’t reflect the voters political views. For about 200 years the government has used gerrymandering during political elections and it continues to be used today (King, Elizabeth) . But recently gerrymandering has become more controversial because people feel that it has taken away their rights as a voter and it swings the votes to one side by a big percentage.

The election of 1796, John Adams versus Thomas Jefferson. The former won by only 3 single electoral college votes. In a highly competitive, controversial race filled with fake smiles and harsh glares, those votes made all the difference in the world to these two men and their running mates. Because George Washington refused a second term, political parties took root when election time came around. No one knew that this election in the early stages of Americas development would define the future of the United States of America.

The Electoral College establishes a group of electors who pledge to vote for the candidate of a specific political party. However, since this method of election is not completely reliant on the popular vote, it is possible for a candidate to become a minority president: a president who only received a majority of electoral votes (and not of the popular vote). Thus, the question arises whether the Electoral College is an appropriate method of selecting a president. After further analysis, it becomes clear that the Electoral College is not a proper mechanism for electing the president.

One of the main disadvantages for third parties candidates is the federal campaign finance laws which are rules that dictate who can enter presidential debates. Another disadvantage is that they are usually not allowed on ballots due to the lack of popular support of media attention and signatures to warrant a place under local

I feel the United States is a nation being hamstrung by corruption, and politicians that favor money over the well-being of the people. With the electoral primaries underway the GOP and DNC are showcasing flaws that question whether democracy exists in the United States. During the Iowa primaries, Republican Ted Cruz told voters Ben Carson would be dropping out. This strategy by Cruz led him to beat Trump by 3.3%. On the other side of the fence, Democrat Hilary Clinton hasn’t yet been indicted for the controversy surrounding her e-mails.

Johnson’s election as Vice President in 1836 was decided in the Senate after twenty-three Virginia electors did not vote for him for personal reasons.” The people wanted to vote for Richard M. Johnson but since the Electoral College did not like him, for personal reasons, the electors decided not to take the people’s opinion and instead they did what they did what they wanted. (Passage 1) “When you vote for your candidate you are actually voting for your candidate’s electors.” When you are voting for your choice of President you are not directly voting for who you want, so the power of voting is taken from the people and it is given to the Electoral College or electors. Not only does the Electoral College take people’s power away it also makes the place you live in decide if your vote is actually important or

In 2012 218,959,000 people were eligible to vote and only 126,144,000 actually voted this outcome shows people don 't have belief their vote counts due to previous acts of the Electoral College. These non-voters adopting the mindset that they don’t matter or don’t count in the bigger picture; 13.4% 218,959,000 of these people not voting simply did not care on voting. The number one reason for people not voting is them believing their vote does not count and the Electoral College chooses the president either way. The concept of how the Electoral College works is not widely talked about it is mostly seen as being complex and people saying their vote doesn’t count anyways. This influences many voters to not even put up with registering to vote or ever voting at all.

“The Electoral College was created by the Founders because they did not trust people enough to allow them to directly elect the president.” Since the majority of the American people had limited education and communication, the founders felt the “average voter lacked the information to be an informed, unbiased judge of candidates for presidency.” Therefore when voters cast their ballot, the college reviews the peoples’ choices and then decides which of their preferences are best. (Lenz and Holman, 87) Many people feel that this system is undemocratic because they are not able to directly vote for their candidate and because the winner of the popular vote can lose the electoral vote. This happened in the 2000 presidential election between George

Also, the winner-take-all attitude discourages independent or third party candidates from running for office (Hershey). Disadvantages: Because people have only two options, voters will have problems choosing the right politician. Two-party systems also promote deadlock and polarization. Every party is looking for political dominance,

The Electoral College is an outdated system and should be abolished before it turns the tables of an election for the bad. This system of voting was developed in 1787 and has had a strong impact on American citizens for 230 years. The Electoral College was created to take power from over populated states and distribute it to the less populated states. It also serves a higher authority than the popular vote, which can alter the results of many elections. In the 230 years of this system being in action, 4 elections have been modified to set the victor as someone who the population did not want.