If we eliminate the last vestiges of state clout and authority, we might as well eliminate states and just have one vast federal government where everything is decided in Washington. States are being stomped on and ignored. States need a few tools, like the Electoral College, to have any chance to compete in the federal system.

Pignanelli: "I am not an advocate for frequent changes in laws and constitutions. But ... with the change of circumstances, institutions must advance also to keep pace with the times." — Thomas Jefferson

Our nation has outgrown the Electoral College. The House of Representatives represents geographic and demographic interests determined by reapportionment. Especially with the critical requirement of 60 votes, the Senate is the crucial vanguard of states' rights. But the federal government needs a national element, which the presidency does not have as a result of the outdated Electoral College.

The current system of winner take all in each state continues to warp presidential elections. Through polling, candidates and media divide the country into red and blue states, and those categorized as "swing" get the attention. This trend is backward (15 states were targeted as competitive in 2004, 40 in 1976). California, Texas and New York will likely be ignored, while millions will be spent to influence and cater to small fragments (i.e., white Catholics in Ohio). Targeting resources at tiny demographic slices is destructive to the national fabric.

Political academics dust off the usual arguments to defend the Electoral College, but 18th-century logic dissolves when confronted by 21st-century realities. The favorite is the existing system benefits smaller states. A nice theory, but when did a presidential contender last spend time in Utah to persuade local voters and not visitors at a convention or mumble encouraging words on the tarmac while the campaign plane is refueled? (Probably Harry Truman's whistle-stop tour in 1948.) The premise is further eroded under modern analysis. According to Electoral College Primer, Utah is one of the six states with the least voting power in national elections. States not deemed "swing" become afterthoughts.

Another favorite is the college preserves federalism in government. Yet the two other branches are federalist in structure. An infusion of nationalism in the executive branch will promote concepts and ideas that transcend state boundaries. A successful national candidate will construct a broad alliance of many categories of Americans, not just rely on a coalition of the party base with a sliver of independents.

Choosing the president by a plurality of the national popular vote instills sense to American politics. All Americans, including long ignored Utahns, deserve attention from national contenders.

Prediction: Should Barack Obama win the popular vote but lose the presidency to John McCain through the antiquated Electoral College process, a constitutional amendment to "update the Constitution" will be seriously reviewed by Congress and various state legislatures.

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Republican LaVarr Webb is a political consultant and lobbyist. Previously he was policy deputy to Gov. Mike Leavitt and a Deseret News managing editor. E-mail: lwebb@exoro.com. Democrat Frank Pignanelli is Salt Lake attorney, lobbyist and political adviser. Pignanelli served 10 years in the Utah House of Representatives, six years as House minority leader. His spouse, D'Arcy Dixon Pignanelli, is a Utah state tax commissioner. E-mail: frankp@xmission.com.