[EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
The elctoral system is not tragic... in fact it is one of the
centerpieces of our federal republic. Just because Gore can rack up
huge majorities in California and NY does not mean he is any more
qualified to be President than the choice of 30 of the 50 States!
So let me put my two cents in about the electoral college.
it is a mistake. We have a beautfiully balanced system without it. All
Americans vote for three types of officials for federal government
1) House of Rep - represent a group of individuals within a state. Elected
every two years they serve the interests of those who vote for them ( a
relatively small group - they are responsive to the needs of this group. They
serve a ligitimate political constitugency
2) Senate - represent the interests of the states. All states have the same
number regardless of size. All citizens in the state get to vote on these
individual - Protects against the tyranny of the big states. Elected every 6
years. In the past senators were chosen by the legislatures. Now by popular
votes in the states.
3) President - represents the interests of all citizens in the country
-should be elected directly by the citizens of the country.
It is argued that:
1) The electoral college protects the smalls states but:
The small states are already protected by the Senate. In other elections all
those voting have the same effect within the election but in the presidental
race, where we all vote we all do not have an equal say.
2) A national popular vote is impractical
Maybe in the past but not now. The outcome of the popular vote has not been
in doubt since Wednesday morning but the electoral vote is still up in the air
3) If irregularities exist in state balloting this will be worse on a
national level
Untrue - It is simple statistics. When two groups are extremely similar you
get more reliable data by increasing the size of your sample. .1% difference
is not statistically significant when you have a sample of a 100,000 but is
significant when you have a sample of 50,000,00. So if the election is as
close as this one is the national vote is a more reliable measure. Think
about it real number terms - Say Gore wins by 100,000 votes. It is unlikely
(statistically impossible) for this to be due to a series of mistakes or
miscounts. The smaller the differences the more important sample size becomes.
