04-03-2019, 08:14 PM
(04-03-2019, 06:22 PM)hollodero Wrote: I don't see the huge exacerbation. If votes count equally for you from everywhere, a candidate would campaign accordingly. Sure focussing on population centers, but I don't see anything wrong with that. Protecting rural areas from areas with more votes seems a bit odd to me, especially since those lesser populated states have a huge overrepresentation in the senate already.
The Framers recognized that this nation was a federation of states that should be treated with, and accorded, equal status despite economic or population differences. It is a coalition of equals even when they are not equals. The Senate is one function of this, the EC has become another. Making the POTUS election a strictly national vote issue eliminates the say of the states in who ultimately governs them. This seems in direct contradiction to the intended purpose of the United States Constitution and the intention of the Framers.
Quote:I have a fundamental issue with the government telling me my vote should be weighed less because I live in the city and not in a rural state. That is strange to me. Why should it? Are my wishes and desires less valuable in a democracy just because where I live?
Except they aren't, because EC votes are determined by HoR numbers of Representatives plus Senate members. Given that every state gets two senators, after that their EC votes are entirely determined by HoR representation. If you think this is inherently unfair then you are arguing for the dismantling of the entire system of US governance.
Quote:Also, why does my vote count for the team the majority in my state voted for, not what I actually voted for? What's the advantage? One sees a quite low election turnout in the US, and this kind of pointlessness might play a role in that frustration. It's hard to be engaged in that environment. Why even bother vote republican in California?
Your low turnout argument is, by far, the best argument against the EC in this thread. I quite agree, a GOP voter in a deep blue state or vice versa, is far less likely to go to the polls and help decide other issue on the ballot. That being said, I still think the EC strikes the best balance between honoring population numbers and ensuring every state has a voice in the election of the POTUS.
