Essay Sample on The Electoral College

Every four years, disruption and corruption arise. Presidential elections are always a time of great controversy and division. The issue of the Electoral College has a long history. To sum it up, it was created as a compromise between the popular vote and Congress voting (USA Gov 1). It uses a handful of electors from each state to decide who wins the presidential election. Recently, though, many people have become cognizant of the flaws in this unfair voting system. Although our founders tried to create a fair and sensible system for the presidential elections, it has not aged well. The system has become highly unfit for our current government and society. The Electoral College should be abolished because it eliminates third parties, encourages voter suppression, and it is undemocratic. 

Third parties are often not thought about because it never seems to be possible for them to win the presidency. What people don’t think about is the cause of this-- it may be because the candidates of that party are unfit for the job, but the most likely reason is the Electoral College. Best said in an article, “Because of our two-party system, voters often find themselves voting for the ‘lesser of two evils,’ rather than a candidate who they really feel would do the best job. The Electoral College inadvertently reinforces this two-party system, where third parties cannot enter the race without being tagged as ‘spoilers’” (FairVote 4). It may seem impossible for a third party to win, but this is not the case. The only reason it is impossible for a third party to win is because of the electoral college. Many people are hesitant to stray away from voting for the two main parties because they know that their vote practically won’t count. Even if voters agree almost completely with a third party candidate, it won't matter. This is because people have completely lost hope that anyone but a democrat or a republican will win. Some people might even refrain from voting at all because they don’t want to vote for someone they don’t want in office. When people vote, they should vote who they believe should be president, and their vote should not be swayed just because of the flawed voting system. 

Regarding who wins, many people who support the Electoral College argue that if we get rid of it we won’t have a clear winner. Their way of thinking is fueled by the fact that they think third parties throw off the election. Although this is a valid point, the Electoral College actually throws off the winner. If we used a different voting system, it would actually decrease the chance of a tie. In addition, with the Electoral College there is a chance of tie. Many times, we were very close to tying the election. This is more than a theory. In the Burr vs. Jefferson election, they tied. The final decision went to the federal government, which completely disregards democracy. Our government is created “By the People, For the People”, so the people should have the say in who wins. Voters should not have to change their vote to fit the system, it should be the other way around. 

Eliminating third parties sways people's desire to vote, but that is not the only way the Electoral College suppresses voters. Voter suppression may be thought of as a thing of the past, but it is still very prevalent. The voting system for the presidential election reinforces suppressing voters. As stated in a Berkeley School article, “Faithless electors are electors who will vote for who they want to be president regardless of the popular vote. There are around 30 states that require their electors to vote for the candidate who wins the popular vote, but there are still about 20 states that don’t have any laws restricting electors. If you were voting in a state with a faithless elector, your vote could essentially not count” (The Berkeley School 2). This is significant because many people may feel like there's no point in voicing their opinion, resulting in lower voter turnout. The Electoral College has a winner take all approach for the states.This is just another way it suppresses voters. For example if you are voting in a mainly republican state, your vote will get canceled out by the majority. Furthermore, this leads to corruption when candidates only campaign in certain areas. Because they only need to appeal to states with more electoral votes, the majority of the country may actually think they are totally unfit for the jobs. If we continue with the Electoral College, it is likely that voter turnout will continue to decrease. 

Some people may argue that the “faithless elector” never happens, so people should still feel inclined to vote. However, this is highly untrue. When looking back at previous elections, “It has happened at least four times out of the 56 presidential elections, or more than 7 percent of the time, which is not such a small percentage and it created a hideous mess every time” (Black 1-2). This further supports why many people don’t feel it is necessary to vote. The framers of our nation, intended for everyone to have a say. Although with the faithless elector, people feel hopeless. The people of our nation should have a say in who is president, not electors who are unloyal to their state. This cannot simply be changed by having different electors or adding more laws, we need to change the whole system. There is never a guarantee what can go on when the votes don’t directly decide our president. 

The faithless elector is just one example of how the Electoral College is undemocratic. According to Fair Vote, “The Electoral College gives disproportionate voting power to the states, favoring the smaller states with more electoral votes per person. The Electoral College favors the smaller states with disproportionate voting power.” This means that your vote is worth more if you live in a smaller state. With democracy, everyone gets an equal amount of say. Furthermore, the electoral votes aren’t democratic. In addition, the votes aren’t actually made by the people; they are made from a group of chosen electors. Voters don’t directly have a say in who wins. This can create a corrupt scenario where the winner of the popular vote doesn’t actually win the election. Again, this has happened multiple times. This further shows how the Electoral College is not fit for our modern society. 

People who defend the Electoral College use the argument that it is democratic because it has the same large state vs. small state compromise as the senate and the house (Maibach 3). This argument is irrelevant, as it doesn’t pertain to the same branch. The legislative branch has many more people than the president and his advisors. Although the government works together as a whole, there are separate branches for a reason. In this sense, the president should be elected by popular vote just like other government officials. If we claim to be a democratic nation, we need to enforce that with our actions. Our government can’t claim this until we have a fair and equal voting system. The people should have a say in the president, not higher officials. 

The Electoral College should no longer be what decides our president because it unfairly favors only two parties, decreases voter turnout, and goes against our democratic foundation. I recognize that amendments are a long process, it is necessary for something this significant. The Constitution was made hundreds of years ago. Our Founding Fathers recognized that as time changes, amendments should be added. We are using a clearing outdated system for something so important.  A president can determine war vs. peace, inflation or no inflation, and so on. We need to take action to end this outdated system.