Electroal College Reform Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Electroal College Reform - Research Paper Example Supporters of election reform want to eradicate the Electoral College system and substitute the one person, one vote which is more familiar and seemingly to some, a more democratic means. Under the Electoral College system the number of electors each state is allocated equals the number of its U.S. House Representatives it currently has plus two, the number of its U.S. Senators. (Kimberling, 1992). Persons in the smaller populated states maintain that if the electoral system were eliminated, presidential candidates would have no incentive to advertise or campaign in their states. â€Å"Why visit a small state with a media market that reaches, say, 100,000 people, when a visit to a large state can put the candidate in touch with millions?† (Gregg, 2001). The McConnell Center for Political Leadership at the University of Louisville studied the grounds for the public’s opinion that a direct, one-person-one-vote procedure would be fairer than the present system. The findings discredited common perceptions that eradicating the electoral system would improve the process. The Electoral College system isn’t usually a contention amongst the electorate unl ess an anomaly in the vote arises and it did fairly recently, in 2000, an event which moved the issue to the forefront of debate where it remains still. The simple truth is if the 2000 election were based on a popular vote, Al Gore would have won by about half a million votes. Many rightly cries foul but actually the Electoral College spared the nation from a substantial dilemma. Envisage the anguish of the nation in the event such a close outcome was determined by a simple majority. â€Å"With just a few hundred thousand votes separating the candidates, every vote in every precinct, in every state would have been worthy of a recount and every recount in every county subject to suit and countersuit† (Gregg, 2001). The outcome may still not be