The Case for Abolishing the Electoral College
Today, my good friend Eileen Reavey hosted a chat with Jesse Wegman, author of the new book Let the People Pick the President on Zoom and the official Facebook page (as opposed to my Grassroots page). Jesse layed out the reasons why we have the Electoral College and how states choosing how to interpret Article II, Section 1, Paragraph 2, as Amended hasn’t always been Winner-Take-All.
Jesse goes on to point out how Compacts only need Congressional Review when they violate Federal Supremacy. This is one of the major arguments we face when defending the NPVIC. Along with the misconception that in most states where are not battlegrounds, your vote doesn’t count now, so under the compact you aren’t decreasing the power of your state, you’re increasing the power of your state’s voters.
Another good point is how non-partisan this issue is. When you put all your eggs in one proverbial basket of battleground states, you end up with a system that more subject to the whim rather than reflecting the will of the nation as a whole. We know, for example, that voter turnout for President is up to 11% higher in battleground states than it is in non-battleground states.
Finally, we touched on the tangential issue of Ranked Choice Voting. The thing that folks don’t understand is any issue with the Spoiler Effect inherent in the NPVIC exists in the Electoral College as well. The NPIC isn’t trying to remedy that issue and that issue is much better approached by promoting Ranked Choice Voting as well as the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact for the reasons Jesse so eloquently outlines.
Webinar with Jesse WegmanWebinar with Jesse Wegman and Eileen Reavey
Posted by National Popular Vote on Thursday, April 23, 2020
I greatly admire Jesse for making the effort to write a wonderful book and to take the time to speak with Eileen. He and I may disagree on how best to end Gerrymandering in Virginia, but I’ll save that argument for another day. Right now, let’s work together to ensure One Person, One Vote where Every Vote is Equal. Ask your state governments to pass the NPVIC today.