The Popular Vote
Anyone who argues that the Electoral College should be scrapped in favor of the popular vote should first understand how the electoral college works and why it was established in the first place. The Electoral College provides a system of checks and balances between the federal and state governments. It maintains the balance of power between the large and the small states. It facilitates the stable transition of power across regular elections.
There's also a conservative notion that the primary purpose of government is to secure and protect the liberty and property of its citizens. Stability is a prerequisite for security. The popular vote can be as fickle and dangerous as a tyrannical mob. It was used in Ancient Greece to condemn Socrates to death. It was manipulated by the demagogues of the 20th century to elect the likes of Adolf Hitler to public office.
Links:
How the Electoral College Works
Brief History and Evaluation of the Electoral College
The Invention of Political Theory
How Democratic was Athens
Anyone who argues that the Electoral College should be scrapped in favor of the popular vote should first understand how the electoral college works and why it was established in the first place. The Electoral College provides a system of checks and balances between the federal and state governments. It maintains the balance of power between the large and the small states. It facilitates the stable transition of power across regular elections.
There's also a conservative notion that the primary purpose of government is to secure and protect the liberty and property of its citizens. Stability is a prerequisite for security. The popular vote can be as fickle and dangerous as a tyrannical mob. It was used in Ancient Greece to condemn Socrates to death. It was manipulated by the demagogues of the 20th century to elect the likes of Adolf Hitler to public office.
Links:
How the Electoral College Works
Brief History and Evaluation of the Electoral College
The Invention of Political Theory
How Democratic was Athens
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