The Problems with the "Conservative" Argument for Abolishing the Electoral College
Jack Kemp
In recent days I have seen an article or two by some conservative saying that there is a major silver lining to abolishing the Electoral College. It is an interesting argument and I will first state it and then rebut it
The argument states that in a place like California, since Republicans know they have been outnumbered, many of them stay home on election day figuring their favorite candidates will lose anyway - but if all the votes in America were pooled together, these GOP votes would have a positive influence. Look at a counties map of the United States and you will see many, many more Republican voting counties so the aggregate total votes will favor the GOP Presidential candidate.
This argument has limited merits and would work in a perfect world world. But it doesn't take into account that the same state Democratic officials in California and Georgia and Pennsylvania and elsewhere will not "lose" a number of GOP voting ballots or find even more Democrat ballots either in suitcases or car trunks or wherever than were allegedly found in the 2020 Presidential Election.
The argument essentially states that in a country the size of the United States, there is less likely to be vote counting problems if the entire three thousand mile wide country (plus Alaska and Hawaii) becomes one big election district. Smaller countries in Europe do a good job of vote counting but they do not stretch across so many kilometers and different autonomous regions. The European Union, a type of United States of Europe, has already found one major country has left it (Great Britain) and others are clamoring to do the same.
Imagine what a year 2000 Florida style recount would look like spread across three thousand miles. It is not a pretty picture.
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To suggest that accurate vote counting under any circumstances or on any scale presents the slightest difficulty is profound ignorance and/or demagoguery.
Posted by: Bill H at April 29, 2021 06:13 PM (/sW5m)
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Well said Jack. The idea of a national popular vote for President is a terrible one, and is guaranteed to lead to fraud and theft on a scale that, well, we just witnessed.
Every election will be the election of 2020.
The reasons the Founders created an Electoral College in the first place are still valid; lower population states will be bullied by the big cities, and there is still no requirement for a vote for President in the Constitution, which leaves it to the states. A national vote would take that authority away from those states. Also, the Founders intended to make the individual states have the ultimate say as opposed to the mob. None of that has changed.
Posted by: Timothy Birdnow at April 30, 2021 06:49 AM (znTZ1)
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I tend to agree Bill; the problem isn't accuracy but honesty where vote counting is concerned.
Posted by: Timothy Birdnow at April 30, 2021 07:06 AM (znTZ1)