[[link removed]]

LARGE MAJORITY OF AMERICANS WANT TO END ELECTORAL COLLEGE  
[[link removed]]


 

Jessica Corbett
September 26, 2024
Common Dreams
[[link removed]]


*
[[link removed]]
*
[[link removed]]
*
*
[[link removed]]

_ The polling follow a Republican push to change Nebraska rules to
boost GOP nominee Donald Trump's chances of winning in November. _

, CNN

 

Polling results released
[[link removed]] Wednesday,
less than six weeks away from November's Election Day, show that a
majority of Americans want to ditch the Electoral College and "would
instead prefer to see the winner of the presidential election be the
person who wins the most votes nationally."

Pew Research Center surveyed 9,720 adults across the United States in
late August and early September, and found that 63% want to abolish
the process outlined in the U.S. Constitution and replace it with a
popular vote approach, compared with just 35% who favor keeping the
current system.

The Electoral College is made up of electors who are supposed to act
on behalf of their state's voters. Each state gets the same number of
electors as its members of Congress, and Washington, D.C. gets three
electors, bringing the current total to 538. The candidate who secures
270 electoral votes becomes the next president.

D.C. and most states allocate all of their electoral votes to the
winner of the popular vote in their state, though Maine and Nebraska
give two votes to the statewide winner, and the remaining votes to the
most popular candidate in each congressional district.

Pew noted Wednesday that "some Republicans have been pressing to
change Nebraska's rules so that the statewide winner gets all five of
its electoral votes. This would likely work to former President Donald
Trump's advantage, given Nebraska's consistent support of GOP
presidential candidates [[link removed]]."

Republican Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen confirmed
[[link removed]] Tuesday
that he has no plans to call a special legislative session to restore
a winner-takes-all approach before the November election, in which
Trump is set to face Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris
[[link removed]].

There have been just five presidential contests
[[link removed]] in
which the Electoral College winner did not also win the nationwide
popular vote—1824, 1876, 1888, 2000, and most recently in 2016, when
Trump beat Democrat Hillary Clinton by securing key "swing states."

Continuing a trend that's lasted over two decades, 8 in 10 Democrats
and Democratic-leaning Independents told Pew that they prefer a
popular vote system for the presidential contest, while Republicans
and Independents who lean toward the GOP were more divided: 53% want
to retain the Electoral College and 46% would like to replace it.

"Reference sources indicate that over the past 200 years more than 700
proposals have been introduced in Congress to reform or eliminate the
Electoral College," according to
[[link removed]] the National
Archives. "There have been more proposals for Constitutional
amendments on changing the Electoral College than on any other
subject."

Among them is a joint resolution that Congressman Steve Cohen
(D-Tenn.) introduced [[link removed]] just days
after Trump incited a violent mob to disrupt the certification of his
2020 loss by storming the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021—for which
the Republican nominee faces ongoing legal trouble.

"Americans expect and deserve the winner of the popular vote for any
office to win and assume that office," Cohen said at the time. "More
than a century ago, we amended our Constitution to provide for the
direct election of U.S. senators. It is past time to directly elect
our president and vice president. The Electoral College is a vestige
of the 18th Century when voters didn't know the candidates who now
appear daily on their phones and television screens."

"Last week's mayhem at the Capitol shows that attempts to manipulate
the Electoral College vote by politicians employing falsehoods are a
real danger," he added. "The president should always be elected by the
people, not by politicians. Currently, the system allows politicians
to make the ultimate decision. It is well past time to do away with
this anachronistic institution and guarantee a fair and accurate vote
for president."

_Jessica Corbett is a senior editor and staff writer for Common
Dreams._

* electoral college
[[link removed]]
* undemocratic
[[link removed]]
* grassroots opposition
[[link removed]]
* poll
[[link removed]]

*
[[link removed]]
*
[[link removed]]
*
*
[[link removed]]

 

 

 

INTERPRET THE WORLD AND CHANGE IT

 

 

Submit via web
[[link removed]]

Submit via email
Frequently asked questions
[[link removed]]
Manage subscription
[[link removed]]
Visit xxxxxx.org
[[link removed]]

Twitter [[link removed]]

Facebook [[link removed]]

 




[link removed]

To unsubscribe, click the following link:
[link removed]