About the new voting system that California is trying to pass? Whichever presidential candidate receives the most popularity votes, also wins California's votes...Sounds a little fishy to me! What do you think?
2006-09-01 12:27:10 · 15 answers · asked by yoohoosusie 5 in Politics & Government ➔ Other - Politics & Government
I don't have a link, I saw it on the news...You know that other little square box thingy in your living room? It will be on again on Fox, oh no that's right most of you are too intelligent for that station! My bad...
2006-09-01 12:41:24 · update #1
Found it. The current electoral system has all electoral votes per state going to the candidate that wins the popular vote per state.
The proposed legislation requires the electors to vote for whoever gets the national popular vote, regardless of the state popular vote. The goal is to attempt to implement a direct democracy. While that defeats the spirit of the electoral college, so does the current implementation.
The problem is, the proposal may violate constitutional state sovereignty principles. Currently, we vote for electors who promise to vote for specific candidates. That's the representative model. Under this proposal, all electors would be legally required to vote for whoever the national majority chose, which means ignoring what the state voters chose. Very tricky issues.
{EDIT to NeoArt and Chainsaw} You do realize that each state is allowed to determine how their electoral votes are cast, right? That's explicit in the Constitution. Article II just sets the number of electors per state. It's up to each state ti determine how those votes are cast based on the popular vote.
2006-09-01 12:32:10 · answer #1 · answered by coragryph 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
They can set it however they would like. However, I don't see how, in the long run, it benefits left or right. If every state does this, then it makes the popular vote the determining factor for the Presidential election. Maine and Nebraska, I believe, give out their electoral votes by congressional district, so they can be split. There's no federal law that determines how electoral college votes are determined. The fact that states give all their votes to one candidate seem highly unfair to me. In a two way race 49.5% of people could vote for the losing candidate and all of the sudden it's as if they didn't exist.
2006-09-01 12:33:49 · answer #2 · answered by WBrian_28 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Actually I think any candidate should win on popular vote rather than electoral provided a system can be established which reduces the chance of tampering. Shouldn't the person actually elected get the office.. after all they are voting for them.
2006-09-01 12:38:10 · answer #3 · answered by genaddt 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I haven't heard, but I do have to say it's more democratic than an electoral college who can vote for a candidate who has lost the popular vote of the citizens.
2006-09-01 12:33:47 · answer #4 · answered by drizzt_234 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
There are states that divide the electoral vote to districts popular vote, its not new. Still think popular vote should decide the election[nationally]
2006-09-01 12:36:05 · answer #5 · answered by longroad 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think Californians are trying to get around the Electoral College which they see as being unfair to the people of the US. I doubt that the state will be able to pass it, but it is interesting. Might get more attention to the population out in California. Might make some of those swing states not as important.
2006-09-01 12:32:26 · answer #6 · answered by NeoArt 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Thanks be! Our last Governor was victim of the US energy Commission, (records still secret) . Dick Cheney was on the board as were other oil men. We voted for Gore: and our energy crunch was engeineered by oil companies, one of whom was Enron. Our last Governor was villified because he was forced to buy electricity at inflated prices , the result being it hurt the state financially. Consumer prices went down later, but he was blamed in his re-election campaign and Swarzenegger won.
The Enron investigation of fraud and corruption produced records of it's officials joking about the the mugging they gave California. But, by then Cheney was already out , slick as a whistle.
If the new voting measure passes in CA . many of us will cheer!
2006-09-01 12:58:54 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Your question makes no sense. With the electoral college, whomever wins the most votes in the state gets all of the electoral votes.
2006-09-01 12:31:56 · answer #8 · answered by Chainsaw 6 · 1⤊ 3⤋
Every thing about American Politics is fishy..
2006-09-01 12:37:54 · answer #9 · answered by plutoniccatgirl 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
There's the Leftists trying to defeat the American system!
2006-09-01 12:31:04 · answer #10 · answered by speakeasy 6 · 1⤊ 4⤋