Electoral College empowers Utahns

What does New Mexico have that Utah doesn't? It's a desert state with rich American Indian and Hispanic traditions. It is sparsely populated, except for one reasonably large metropolitan area. And it will cast five electoral votes in this year's presidential election.

It is, in many ways, Utah's equal. And yet both President Bush and Democratic Sen. John Kerry spent part of last week in New Mexico, campaigning with energy, mingling with crowds and tossing verbal grenades at each other. Neither one has so much as glanced at Utah this year, except maybe from 30,000 feet.

The reason, of course, is that this is not a so-called battleground state. The president and everyone else long ago tallied Utah's five electoral votes in the Republican column. It's more of a sure thing even than the Yankees making the playoffs each year.

But there are two more sure things. One is that both candidates would be here right now working the crowds if Utahns were evenly divided over the two candidates. The other is that without the electoral college neither candidate would step foot, ever, in Utah or New Mexico. If the only object were to get as many votes as possible, candidates would spend all their time in major population centers, and they would care even less than they do now about the things important to those of us in small states.

This time of year, it is common to hear people arguing to abolish the Electoral College. This chorus seems especially loud right now because of the problems of the 2000 election and because of how close things look to be right now, but the argument has continued unabated every four years for decades. Pundits here and elsewhere have called it archaic, little more than an afterthought by the Founding Fathers and a holdover from days when people owned slaves and wouldn't let women vote.

All true, and all completely irrelevant.

We're also seeing efforts to make the Electoral College more reflective of the people's will. This year, voters in Colorado will decide whether to grant their eight electoral votes proportionately. If they vote "yes," it will take effect immediately — as will, no doubt, several lawsuits. Had this been in effect in 2000, Bush would have gotten only five votes from Colorado, rather than eight. Oh yes, and Al Gore would be president today.