Thoughts on the Electoral College
Mark Rapier CMAS, ALC
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Every four years, America is reacquainted with the Electoral College.? While it is generally understood, why it exists is less well known.
Purpose and History
When the Constitutional Convention met in Philadelphia, there were many opinions about the best method for electing the President and Vice President.? Some of the options considered were popular vote, election by Congress, and election by governors.? The compromises began when all agreed that the people should choose their president.? Two factors drove the creation of the Electoral College.
One was the desire to ensure the relevance of smaller states.? The number of electors equals the number of senators and representatives in each state.? This goal also led to the more troubling three-fifths compromise.? The number of representatives was determined based on population: one representative per 30,000 people.? To balance numbers, the population was “determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.”? The Fourteenth Amendment removed the three-fifths compromise but let in the phrase “Indians not taxed.”
The second reason for the college was that, when the country was founded, travel and communication were difficult, and many people were not and could not be aware of issues of national importance. ?State legislatures chose Electors, who voted for the president. ?By the mid-1800s, most states obligated electors to vote for the candidate based on the popular vote in their state.
The next complicating factor arose with the passage of the Permanent Apportionment Act of 1929. ?This act limited the size of the House of Representatives to 435, ostensibly due to the limited physical space available in the Capitol building. ?In 1929, there were 48 states, and roughly half of all Americans lived in metropolitan areas. ?Today, 80% of Americans live in cities.
The Population Distribution Today
In 1920, the U.S. population was 121.7 million. ?Today, 333.3 million call America home. ?The combination of growth and urbanization has resulted in an interesting outcome. ?Today, there are twenty metropolitan areas with populations larger than the smallest ten states combined.? San Antonio is only slightly smaller, with 2.49 million residents.
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The result is that the majority of smaller states receive little, if any, attention from presidential candidates. ?Over half of the college is allocated to the 14 most populous states, which explains why the elections always seem to come down to results in a handful of states.
I like the concept of the Electoral College.? When voting in our only national election, our largest cities should not be able to overwhelm so many of our states.? I do not have any great ideas for improving the balance in the system.
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