Fixing a Broken Election System
Our Founding Fathers were geniuses – individually and in the whole. Over two centuries, some of their genius has been altered in order to garner political control. Three of these are the Electoral College, President and Vice President elections, and popular vote of Senators instead of elected by the state legislatures.
It is time to return some of these to their original purpose, and fix those that have been maligned for political gain.
ELECTORAL COLLEGE
The Electoral College was setup to assure that the majority did not ignore or rule over the minority. Generally, a state has the same electoral votes as their total Senators and Representatives in Congress.
There are two essential problems to this system: 1) there is inconsistency – states can choose to give all votes to the popular vote of their state or split their votes based on the popular vote; and 2) some states have such a majority of votes that campaigning is done based on their being able to win these majority states (i.e. 270 votes are needed, CA alone is 55 winner take all).
The Electoral College has a lasting purpose and can be easily fixed. First, get rid of the ‘winner take all’.
-- All states must follow the same guidelines for designation of votes;
-- Votes will be divided in the following manner:
PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT
The election of the president and vice president was originally not by party ticket, but by popular vote. The winner was elected president and the next was elected vice president. You may have the same party win, or one from each party.
We should return to that. There might be some political flak and disagreement – but at least some balance might be restored.
SENATE BY STATE LEGISLATURES
Until the 17th Amendment to our Constitution, championed by early 20th century progressives (socialists), Senators were elected by state legislatures to assure that the states were represented in Congress. The Representatives were elected by the people.
With the 17th Amendment, Senators – like Representatives – are elected by popular vote of the people.
It would be best to repeal the 17th Amendment and return to the state legislatures electing Senators. Like reforming the Electoral College, there might be some political flak and disagreement – but at least some balance might be restored.
TERM LIMITS
Many speak of term limits in Congress. As detailed in ‘Beers with our Founding Fathers’, there are many issues with attempting this. The best term limits are by the voter. Two issues – supporting and defending our Constitution and promoting free market capitalism – both as elected officials and government. For the Senators, if they are doing as their state requires, the state legislature can put forward a new Senator. For the Representatives, if they are not doing as their district requires, the constituents can put forward a new Representative. It is not about party – it is about the two components of the Constitutional Conservative ideology.
Dean A. Beers, American Patriot
author and speaker
www.BeersWithOurFoundingFathers.com
Blog - www.WeLoveOurUSA.com
www.facebook.com/BeersWithOurFoundingFathers.com
Our Founding Fathers were geniuses – individually and in the whole. Over two centuries, some of their genius has been altered in order to garner political control. Three of these are the Electoral College, President and Vice President elections, and popular vote of Senators instead of elected by the state legislatures.
It is time to return some of these to their original purpose, and fix those that have been maligned for political gain.
ELECTORAL COLLEGE
The Electoral College was setup to assure that the majority did not ignore or rule over the minority. Generally, a state has the same electoral votes as their total Senators and Representatives in Congress.
There are two essential problems to this system: 1) there is inconsistency – states can choose to give all votes to the popular vote of their state or split their votes based on the popular vote; and 2) some states have such a majority of votes that campaigning is done based on their being able to win these majority states (i.e. 270 votes are needed, CA alone is 55 winner take all).
The Electoral College has a lasting purpose and can be easily fixed. First, get rid of the ‘winner take all’.
-- All states must follow the same guidelines for designation of votes;
-- Votes will be divided in the following manner:
- Equal to Representatives – these will be awarded by the winner of the congressional district getting a vote.
- Equal to Senators – these two votes go to the winner of the state popular vote (not Electoral College votes).
PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT
The election of the president and vice president was originally not by party ticket, but by popular vote. The winner was elected president and the next was elected vice president. You may have the same party win, or one from each party.
We should return to that. There might be some political flak and disagreement – but at least some balance might be restored.
SENATE BY STATE LEGISLATURES
Until the 17th Amendment to our Constitution, championed by early 20th century progressives (socialists), Senators were elected by state legislatures to assure that the states were represented in Congress. The Representatives were elected by the people.
With the 17th Amendment, Senators – like Representatives – are elected by popular vote of the people.
It would be best to repeal the 17th Amendment and return to the state legislatures electing Senators. Like reforming the Electoral College, there might be some political flak and disagreement – but at least some balance might be restored.
TERM LIMITS
Many speak of term limits in Congress. As detailed in ‘Beers with our Founding Fathers’, there are many issues with attempting this. The best term limits are by the voter. Two issues – supporting and defending our Constitution and promoting free market capitalism – both as elected officials and government. For the Senators, if they are doing as their state requires, the state legislature can put forward a new Senator. For the Representatives, if they are not doing as their district requires, the constituents can put forward a new Representative. It is not about party – it is about the two components of the Constitutional Conservative ideology.
Dean A. Beers, American Patriot
author and speaker
www.BeersWithOurFoundingFathers.com
Blog - www.WeLoveOurUSA.com
www.facebook.com/BeersWithOurFoundingFathers.com
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