cons of the national popular vote plan

Politicians would focus on fewer swing states (Bigger states more potential votes) 6. As of December 2020, the National Popular Vote bill has been adopted by 15 states and the District of Columbia, controlling 196 electoral votes: CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, HI, IL, MA, MD, NJ, NM, NY, OR, RI, VT, and WA. . For the 7 presidential elections between 1992-2016, the Republican candidate has won the Electoral college 3 times. https://www.thoughtco.com/the-national-popular-vote-plan-3322047 (accessed March 4, 2023). The pros and cons of the popular vote structure of an election allow for the majority to have their say in who they wish to serve. Once effective, states could withdraw from the compact at any time except during the six-month window between July 20 of an election year and Inauguration Day (January 20). 7. a plan for a national popular vote could undermine the . In the 2020 election California did not certify their votes until Friday, December 11, only 3 days before the Electoral College met on Monday, December, 14. Though the original, some would say highly undemocratic, purpose. To take effect, the National Popular Vote bill must be enacted by the state legislatures of states controlling a total of 270 electoral votes - a majority of the overall 538 electoral votes and the number currently required to elect a president. 622 By John Samples The National Popular Vote plan (NPV), introduced in more than 40 states, and adopted. A faithless elector in the United States is someone who casts an electoral ballot for someone other than the individuals to whom they are pledged. Common Cause There are a number of pros for this method. How the National Popular Vote Plan Would Work. Presidential candidates have no reason to poll, visit, advertise, organize, or campaign in states that they cannot possibly win or lose; in 2016, 68% of presidential campaign visits took place in just six states. It would reduce the influence of third parties on the U.S. presidential election. But the national popular vote plan doesn't require a . First it would be relatively easy to implement. There are pros and cons to both systems. It gives more voting power to individual voters in smaller states. Not only it already happened five times, but in theory, a candidate could win the presidency with only 22% of the popular vote in a two-candidates race. In a direct popular election, a candidate could theoretically win without having broad support throughout the country. The bill has passed one chamber in 12 additional states with 96 electoral votes. Definition and Examples, How Political Party Convention Delegates are Chosen, What Is a Caucus? Advantages of the NPV Interstate Compact 1. A candidate can win the popular vote in enough states to win a majority of electoral votes but still lose the popular vote nationally. Our state will likely vote overwhelmingly for the Republican challenger to Barack Obama in November. Because of the state Winner-Take-All rules, which arent even part of the Constitution, they can lead to presidential elections where the winner of the election doesnt have the most popular votes. It was a great idea in 1787 but the country has changed since 1787 and the people today want to elect the president by a simple, direct popular vote where whoever gets the most votes wins like we do in every other election in the country. Start and finish your paper with ease. Robert Longley is a U.S. government and history expert with over 30 years of experience in municipal government and urban planning. At that stage, anyone who received an electoral vote is eligible to become the next president. Longley, Robert. In U.S. history, the electoral college winner has failed to secure the popular vote 5 times. That would likely reduce the number of voters who cast a ballot in each election as most people are more concerned about local impacts than national policies. The National Popular Vote Bill is not a Democrat or Republican bill. If enacted by enough states, the National Popular Vote bill would guarantee the presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. This has occurred in 5 of the nation's 56 presidential elections, most recently in 2016. For more information, please see our And thats not how it should be in a democracy. The time to stop its momentum is now. The principal flaw in the plan is its assumption that under the plan there will still be only two major parties competing for the presidency in 2020. . 1. 2. That nightmare may seem like a pleasant dream if NPV has its way. The National Popular Vote Bill is a bill for Americans interested in both preserving our Electoral College and reforming the shortcomings of our current "winner-take-all" system that awards all the electors of one state to the candidate who wins in that particular state and . It would require an Amendment in the U.S. for presidential elections. Under the plan, Michigan's 15 Electoral . Would you like to get a custom essay? The official 2016 election results from the Electoral College gave Donald J. Trump the victory with 306 electoral votes v. Hillary Clinton's 232 votes. cons of the national popular vote plan. It fails to reach the ideal of one-person one-vote. The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC) is an agreement among a group of U.S. states and the District of Columbia to award all their electoral votes to whichever presidential ticket wins the overall popular vote in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Just 12 Closely Divided Battleground States Got 96% of 2020 Campaign Events. I will explain that in another blog post. By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. 3. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. But if we set politics aside and focus on what is really best for democracy in our country in the long run I believe that the advantages of using the NPV compact to elect our president outweigh the disadvantages and the best way to elect our president in the 21st century is by direct popular vote using Ranked Choice Voting. A Critique of the National Popular Vote October 13, 2008 Policy Analysis No. You can find out more about our use, change your default settings, and withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future by visiting Cookies Settings, which can also be found in the footer of the site. In the 2016 election, "swing states" that might vote Republican or Democrat like Wisconsin were targets of candidates Donald J. Trump and Hillary R. Clinton. The National Popular Vote plan is a bill passed by participating state legislatures agreeing that they will cast all of their electoral votes for the presidential candidate winning the nationwide popular vote. If that was to take place, America could potentially face the same issues it is facing now. All other elections in the U.S. are through the popular vote. During the 2012 elections, 38 states, also known as spectator states, were ignored and forgotten. We have seen this outcome in the 2016 Presidential election between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump and in the 2000 election between George H.W. 13 Early College High School Pros and Cons, 18 Major Advantages and Disadvantages of the Payback Period, 20 Advantages and Disadvantages of Leasing a Car, 19 Advantages and Disadvantages of Debt Financing, 24 Key Advantages and Disadvantages of a C Corporation, 16 Biggest Advantages and Disadvantages of Mediation, 18 Advantages and Disadvantages of a Gated Community, 17 Big Advantages and Disadvantages of Focus Groups, 17 Key Advantages and Disadvantages of Corporate Bonds, 19 Major Advantages and Disadvantages of Annuities, 17 Biggest Advantages and Disadvantages of Advertising. sale of united methodist church property. Imperfect, because its modern-day blessings -- enhancing coalition building, pluralism, federalism and grass-roots participation -- are enjoyed only by a minority of states (in any given presidential election 18 or 20), where the battle for electoral votes is competitive for both major parties. In the case of a tie, there are contingencies in place to determine which person will serve in the elected office. It has been enacted by twelve states, which include Rhode Island, Vermont, Hawaii, the District of Columbia, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Washington, New Jersey, Illinois, New York, and California. Some areas may bend the rules of an election by extending voting hours illegally. National Popular Vote Plan page 3 that non-member states that fail to hold such elections will not be included in the determination of 'the national popular vote winner.' This sidesteps the problem and provides an incentive for all states (non-members as well as members) to (continue to) hold such elections. To become president of the United States of America, you must be at least 35 years old, have lived in the U.S. for at least 14 years and be a natural-born citizen. As of now, 15 states and Washington, D.C. have joined the National Popular Vote compact: Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Maryland, Washington, New Jersey, Illinois, New York, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Delaware and Oregon. The National Bonus Plan maintains the Electoral College voting system but adds 102 bonus electoral votes to the existing 538 votes. Thats a bank of about 14 million potential voters that reliably vote as a majority for Democratic candidates. Lawmakers discuss plan to enact National Popular Vote in Michigan. The NPV is a multi-state agreement that, when active, would ensure that the presidential candidate who wins the popular vote nationally also wins in the Electoral College. It happened once, in 1876. National Popular Vote is a constitutional and practical way to implement nationwide popular election of the President a goal traditionally supported by an overwhelming majority of Americans. By adding this new interstate compact to the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system to elect our president we are in fact making this system even more complicated and even harder for the voters to understand. In addition, the bill has been unanimously approved at the committee level in the states of Georgia and Missouri, controlling a combined 27 electoral votes. Yes. Many Americans are confused about how a win is obtained under these conditions and are on a quest to change this traditional statute. In 2016, Hillary Clinton had more than 10 million of these votes, while Donald Trump had more than 8.3 million, even though Trump won 30 states and Clinton won 20 and the District of Columbia. She graduated magna cum laude from Brandeis University with bachelor's degrees in creative writing, English/American literature and international studies. "The National Popular Vote bill would guarantee the Presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in the entire U.S. And finally, the Electoral College doesnt work today anywhere near how the Founding Fathers intended it to work when they created it back in 1787. List of the Cons of Proportional Representation. Using a popular vote system, candidates could campaign regionally, targeting major areas of support, to secure enough votes to win an election. Bush and Al Gore (Black). In 2016, Florida had 29 electoral votes and 9.4 million voters, created a voter value of 0.72. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. These battleground or swing states receive 7% more federal grants, twice as many presidential disaster declarations, more Superfund enforcement exemptions, and more No Child Left Behind law exemptions (National Popular Vote). That created a voter value of 2.85. Thats the way it has been in this country for a long time. Once enacted, the participating states would cast all of their electoral votes for the presidential candidate winning the nationwide popular vote, thus ensuring that candidate the required 270 electoral votes. Hence, the National Popular Vote plan is an interstate compact a type of state law authorized by the U.S. Constitution that enables states to enter into a legally enforceable, contractual obligation to undertake agreed joint actions, which may be delayed in implementation until a requisite number of states join in. Cons of Electoral College. It would limit the influence of local issues in the election. The Congressional District method would allocate electoral votes based on the winner of each congressional district. They have only won the popular vote once. That, in turn, would likely diminish voter turnout. Every state is allocated several votes according to the number of senators and representatives in its U.S. Congressional delegation. 2015. Either would provide a reason for both parties to compete in most states because there would be electors to win. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. As the National Popular Vote (NPV) movement steps up its effort to impose a direct election for president, attempting to enlist states with a sufficient number of electors to constitute a majority (268) and to bind them to the winner of the national popular vote, those states considering the proposal might first reflect on the nightmare aftermath of the 2000 presidential election. Under the National Popular Vote plan,the compact would take effect only when enabling legislation has been enacted by states collectively possessing a majority of the electoral votes:270 of 538 total. It is also true that no president since 1824 has received the votes of a majority of the eligible voters and 18 presidents, including Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Woodrow Wilson, Harry S. Truman, John. The National Popular Vote effort, explained The National Popular Vote effort is now halfway to its goal of electing future presidents via the popular vote, after Rhode Island Gov. But the much greater danger to American democracy is that direct elections may make it possible for a president to be elected by no more than 30 percent of the vote, regardless of his or her suitability for office, so long as there is sufficient money and a clever media advisor behind the effort. Would it aid a fight to eliminate first past the post or would it further entrench the established party system voters American voters have expressed disdain for. Cookie Notice Although this may limit the amount of diversity that occurs in office, and may generate extra financial costs, the argument could be made that these risks outweigh the results of an election where a majority of states, not a majority of people, put someone into office. That structure makes it easier for extremist views to find official representation. The first advantage allows for electoral votes to be fairer than the Electoral College (Richards). If this happens many people in the red states will not feel that the change is legitimate even if its legal and technically constitutional. However, many people believe that a direct popular election is more democratic and fair than the Electoral College. Cons: Smaller states don't get as much of a say and people would demand a national recount National Bonus Plan Winner of popular vote gets extra 102 electoral votes Pros: No winner of popular vote losing overall Cons: Basically exactly like the Direct plan District Plan Win popular vote in each district, you get one electoral vote. To pass an amendment to change the Constitution the Founding Fathers wisely required approval by 2/3 of both houses of Congress and 3/4 of the state legislatures instead of a simple majority. A popular vote election would bring the presidential election in line with the rest of the election structures. If the National Popular Vote bill was secured within the American government, it would protect every vote and would allow those votes to equally matter in the presidential election. "The National Popular Vote Plan." What would happen during a switch to the popular vote would be unknown. 4. The President-Elect takes the oath of office and is sworn in as President of the United States on January 20th in the year following the Presidential election (Archives). Note: Today we are in a phase where the popular vote in presidential elections leans Democratic. Con:not Eliminate possibility that loser of the popular vote can still win the electoral vote The Proportional Plan A proposed reform where each presidential candidate would receive the percent of electoral votes that they win from each state Proportional Plan Pro:Possible for loser of popular vote to win presidency. 9. Instead of a direct popular election, the United States has the Electoral College, a group of electors who represent each state's votes. and our F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush were elected with less than a majority of the votes cast. Moving to the popular vote structure would eliminate this potential issue. Because its so hard to get an amendment to the Constitution passed that means that once it becomes law it will probably remain so for a long time because the bar to change it back is so high. As of December 2020, the bill has been fully adopted predominately by Democratic-majority blue states which delivered the 14 largest vote shares for Barack Obama in the 2012 Presidential Election. The National Popular Vote Plan. After all, is said and done, the candidate who attains the largest number of votes can still lose. That means a candidate who receives a majority of their votes in a high-delegate state, such as California, could make a dramatic impact on the rest of the election. Get breaking news and updates from Common Cause. The discussion around using the popular vote for elections has increased since the results of the 2016 election. 4. The National Popular Vote stems from the winner-take-all approach that validates the presidential candidate interactions with only 4 out of 50 dates during their campaign. As a result, the bill will take effect when enacted by states possessing an additional 74 electoral votes. 5. Even though pre-election polls made conspicuous predictions of Hilary Clinton winning the presidency and . With the polarization in global politics today, especially in the United States, a switch to the popular vote would likely increase costs even further. The horror of a potential national recount is only one of the dangers direct presidential elections poses. There would be fewer opportunities to illegally alter the results of an election. However, some critics argue that the advantages of a direct popular election including reflecting democratic principals, outweigh the disadvantages. Around six-in-ten U.S. adults (63%) say the way the president is elected should be changed so that the winner of the popular vote nationwide wins the presidency, while 35% favor keeping the current Electoral College system, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted June 27-July 4, 2022. In fact, let's tally up all the votes cast for president between 1932 and 2008. It gives each vote an equal amount of power. Today, many electors are bound to vote according to their states' popular vote results, and those who aren't almost always do. (2021, Jun 14). Some critics argue that more people would vote in a direct popular election, according to the University of the Pacific. In theory we could change how we elect our president every four years. The Electoral College is very undemocratic and riddled with issues. According to the University of Missouri-Kansas City Law School, some proponents of the Electoral College argue that it isolates election problems, such as illegally extended voting hours or irregularly high voter turnout. [Add switching votes of losing party to the other partys voter totals in every state using the Electoral College/Winner-Take-All system (except for 5 EC votes in Maine and Nebraska that are awarded proportionally instead of by Winner-Take-All.]. If the election is based off a popular vote, each of these areas would need to be closely examined in real-time, which would enhance the security of each vote that is cast. All other votes cast for that candidate are therefore superfluous. Is this a solution to first past the post or is it merely reinforcing our current two party system?

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