Because the electoral college is mandated by the U.S.
Constitution, a constitutional amendment is required to abolish
it. Though amendments to the U.S. Constitution are few and far between,
there seem few better goals than creating a true American democracy,
and so we should remain at least cautiously optimistic.
A Constitutional amendment dealing with the electoral college could
not be contingent on federal legislative ratification. The stakes are
simply too high for most politically-motivated Representatives and Senators
to even give the issue much thought. Why, in their right minds, would these
mainstream politicians support an initiative that would drastically reduce,
if not entirely shatter, their permanent grasp on political power? Quite
frankly, they wouldn't. So, for all intents and purposes, such an amendment
would have to originate in and be ratified by the states.
A reasonable and solvent amendment would do the following:
Abolish the electoral college (by repealing Article II, Section 1
of the U.S. Constitution);
Establish a new voting system under which each party nominates a single
Presidential candidate;
In the event of no candidate winning a majority of the popular
vote, a runoff will take place in a separate election, between the two
candidates who received the most votes in the first, general, election.
There would be numerous advantages to a constitutional amendment
abolishing the electoral college. People would finally have a direct
say in choosing their President. Each and every vote would count.
American democracy would be complete.
Moreover, third party candidates could at least
aspire towards contending in a Presidential election. Without the confines
of the electoral college, a candidate could win 12%
in a Presidential election without winning the
majority of a single state, and could, quite fairly, still be credited with
winning 12% of the vote. The effects of this would be quite far-reaching.
The popularity
and prominence of many third parties would surely skyrocket, and, over a
period of years, could put a non-Republican or Democrat in the White
House.
The amendment would provide all citizens with a voice, and all candidates
with a chance, a feat which has never before been achieved in the history
of American politics.
Because the electoral college is mandated by the U.S.
Constitution, a constitutional amendment is required to abolish
it. Though amendments to the U.S. Constitution are few and far between,
there seem few better goals than creating a true American democracy,
and so we should remain at least cautiously optimistic.