Thank you. Thanks so much, anthony, and thank you to the Federalist Society for hosting this debate at its annual faculty conference. Im delighted to be here with two distinguished scholars to moderate this debate on the question should the Electoral College be as you are aware, the constitution establishes an Electoral College for choosing the president meeting in their respective states, the electors vote by ballot for the president and vice president. Inxander hamilton wrote federalist 68 that the Electoral College will provide a cticable obstacle 2 intrigue and corruption, he said that it would impose capable discernment for deliberation over the selection of the president. Bestton thought the system designed to vent, and disorder. As we head into the 2020 president ial election, debates about the Electoral College once again emerge over the desired voting of our constitutions method. This debate is an important one about our republic and about our constitutional form of government
It is also better from an equal protection perspective. He said there is nothing not democratic about the system. The Supreme Court has expressly said that a winner take all system like this, which basically resolves the allocation of delegates at an 1963im level, like in footnote 12, the court expressly which is that system, basically Electoral College at the state level, is a system for counting the votes of the minority for the purpose of discarding those votes. Whathat was a violation of equality would require. This alternative would eliminate that problem. Givethis would do is everybody more power relative to the current stump which gives power to the Supreme Court instead. In the end the only argument we are going to have each are that my alternative would biased in favor of the small states, whereas the current alternative bias is in favor of the big states. I can tell you many on the right would be surprised because many on the right think the Current System bias is in favor of
Thanks so much for being here tonight for one of the most contentious consequential and closely watched u. S. Elections in history thats right Democrat Joe Biden is fighting to unseat republican President Donald Trump and the world has its eyes on america tonight and well be following every twist and turn with our team of correspondents and experts and ill be keeping you up to date with all the results as they come in and this of course is an election played out with america in crisis mode the cold food pandemic is surging and theres a stark political divide and thats raising fears of unrest but turnout is set to shatter all records lets take a look now at deadline day for American Voters. This is what us to mock crissy looks like today huge lines at many polling stations in one of the worlds oldest and largest democracies from chile wisconsin in the north. Through the city that never sleeps. To tropical florida and the south voters seem to have shown up in massive numbers even during
Very popular among the Political Science it. And were gonna do it with George C Edwards book, hopefully read most of it, you get an argument against Electoral College, it lays out all of the common arguments for it as well which is helpful for allowing each person to make up their mind about what they think about this institution genuinely speaking. This is i really do a whole week on this because it is how we elect the president but few americans understand the full extent of the process, if you take a course in the american presidency should probably walk away understanding how this process we used to select our chief executive officer works. Also because it is important and how elections turn out. Just like how we started our discussion on president ial nominations by talking about the history and processes and a deep dive into the process rules, the rule nominations today. We should start out with this the same way with even deeper dive into the single most important institutional
Calculation, 272 electoral votes ford, so far for gerald the opponent. Election 1976, day of decision. This is Richard Scanlon of washington. Studios isay in our Howard Penniman of georgetown theersity, stephen hess of brookings institution. Tuesdaysscuss bicentennial election here in the United States. Not every last vote has even been counted now and so the provisional final totals are posted behind me, both in electoral and popular votes for mr. Kaiser and for president ford. Carter and for president four. As you know and all of our elections in the long history of actual winnerthe is determined not by the millions of people who voted for carter or for ford but rather by the 51 elections held in the states and district of columbia. Each state has assigned to it a number of Electoral College votes equal to its congressmen and senators combined. The last of us alaska as three, minnesota as 10. The big states even more. The combination of these electoral votes to a majority of 270 is w