Electoral College System Essay

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The roots of the Electoral College System can be traced way back to more than 200 years. A controversial debate on the effectiveness of Electoral College continues over years. The founders established it as a resolution between president choice by a vote in congress and choice of the president by qualified citizens’ popular vote. 538 electors constituted the Electoral College and 270 majorities of electoral votes choose the president. The United States got its independence from Great Britain, and its government based on the Articles of Confederation (Burgan 9). According to Burgan, under the article, the states acted almost like separate nations (9). It is well-known that the United States president becomes elected by Electoral College and …show more content…
The system also maintains the nations’ federal character since combinations of even small states opinions receives attention. A small portion of a very populous state cannot overshadow the minority. The status of the minority is enhanced as they influence critical edge for candidates to emerge victorious. Contestants get encouraged to venture into minorities through the system and not ignore them. The College also eliminates most election problems. According to Bugh, the system essentially assigns to the winner the votes of the people who voted against that candidate (159). He continues that because there is no way to total votes across states, the votes for candidates who do not win a state do not have a role in the outcome of elections (159). In-case of recounts, it occurs only in states and not nationwide. I believe the college encourages stability via the two-party system where regional minorities are not undermined.
The intention for the design of Electoral College appeared to choose a person that demonstrates both popular support and a broad distribution of support. This goal becomes an achievement over the past decades. Some critics think that voting power of smaller states gets overrepresented. They fail to acknowledge the democratic will of all states as equal despite their low populations. Presidential campaigns disperse