Wichita Falls Times Record News
Our Opinions: A better way
We should bypass electoral college to reinvent our presidential process
September 13, 2006
Sometimes, what comes out of California can be pretty wacky.
But in just the last week, that state's legislature has approved a plan that every other state in the nation should likewise OK.
The bill, if signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, could well lead to the elimination of the electoral college as we know it today.
It's long past time the electoral college was dismantled.
It's long past time we elect our presidents by popular national vote. The candidate with the majority would win.
Back in 2000, the candidate with the most votes lost the presidency because of the electoral college.
In 2004, John Kerry might have won if just a handful of votes in key electoral states had gone his way. He lost the popular vote by a significant number.
Historically, opponents of the college have noted that it has many flaws, summarized here from other newspaper articles and information provided by the National Popular Vote Campaign:
Only a few states are of major importance in the production of electors;
Issues of importance to voters in other states don't get a hearing;
Because of time changes, some voters on the West Coast stay home because the electoral vote has already been tallied and a victor proclaimed;
And some states' voters have more say in the outcome than do others.
The way the system works now, voters cast ballots in presidential elections for electors in their state. The number of electors is determined by adding two (the number of U.S. Senators) to the number of House members.
The electors are not bound to vote for the candidate voters in their states preferred.
The electoral system is set up under the U.S. Constitution, so eliminating it would be difficult if not impossible.
The National Popular Vote group, formed earlier this year, wants to bypass the Constitution in a very legal and creative way. Each state legislature would agree that electoral votes would go to the winner of the national popular vote.
The California legislature signed on to do that. Now, the governor should sign the bill.
In addition, the plan should be supported by every other state.
It's a much more democratic and fair way of conducting presidential elections.
