If you require the winner to have at least 50 percent, plus one, the country would mire itself in runoff elections. In 2000, Ralph Nader would have been beating down Al Gore's door, asking for a deal in exchange for his endorsement. Ross Perot would have done the same to George H.W. Bush and Bob Dole in the '90s.
Want to be like Europe? In a parliamentary system, people vote for political parties, who choose the prime minister.
The Electoral College is peculiar, but it is no less fair than any other system, and it is better than most. That will remain true no matter what happens Tuesday night.
Jay Evensen is associate editor of the Deseret News editorial page. Email him at even@desnews.com. For more content, visit his website, www.jayevensen.com.
DeseretNews.com encourages a civil dialogue among its readers. We welcome your thoughtful comments.
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Jay Evensen is an editorial writer and columnist for the Deseret News. He has been a member of the editorial board for 17 years. Prior to that, he was reporter for the Deseret News, the Las Vegas Review-Journal and United more ..
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"Simply put, it keeps the emphasis on states and the issues that matter to them. In a far-flung and diverse nation, it keeps someone from getting elected by pandering to the interests of one populous region to the exclusion of others."
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Funny.
Now that it looks like Mitty is gonna lose the Electoral College but win the popular vote, repubs have suddenly flip flopped to be hating on the Electoral College. What a huge flip flop from just a few years ago. Had we gotten rid More..
Changing the electoral college would require a constitutional amendment. This will never happen because several small states would have to agree to it. Since the small states are over-represented in the electoral college, they would voluntarily have More..