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REPLY TO THREAD
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Subject
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Do we really need the Electoral College? POLL
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Original Message
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More than 200 years ago a compromise was made to help the smaller states ratify the U.S. Constitution.
It was very obvious that the pro-slavery southern states wanted the same amount of power as the northern states. The northern states had the power because the population of the country for the most part lived in the northern part of the United States. The Electoral College was created to try to make things “fair” between the North and the South.
Every time I sit and watch these elections and how the popular vote does not win the election because the electoral college decides they want to give all their votes to the other candidate.
Three times in history this has happened and the Electoral College has prevailed over the national vote so why should we vote?
I advocate and tell people that their vote matters, but I feel that the more I try to explain to someone why they should vote, they look at something like the Electoral College and past results they just laugh because they feel like their vote does not matter.
Miranda Farmer of Ellisville stated the following during a recent interview I had with her regarding this same issue: “I don’t feel like my vote even counts. I’m just a member of a red state. If I wanted to vote for a Democrat, it wouldn’t even matter. The Republican would always win.”
You see in this circumstance she makes a very valid point, however, I was very surprised to see a state like Virginia which normally goes Red and in 2008 went Blue.
What in this case changed the electors’ minds and said you know what let’s go with something different. In Ms. Farmer’s defense, though, it is very obvious why she feels the way she does because the electors don’t always go with the public.
In the case of the 2012 election for a few minutes seemed like President Obama would not win the popular vote and Mitt Romney would. I simply ask the question though, we have picked our president already and I ask you what about the provisional ballots in Ohio?
What about those states who still have not counted their absentee ballots, yet we have named our president. This is why some feel their vote simply does not matter.
Hindsight is not always 20/20, but I think it may be time to refocus a little and figure out a better way because if we use the current method for many more elections, how many more elections will be skewed and the people will be given something they simply do not want?
Think of this as food for thought as we move into the next four year. Where do you want this country to be in four years and just how long do we need to get it there?
source - [link to www.hattiesburgamerican.com]
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U. S. Electoral College: Frequently Asked Questions
[link to www.archives.gov]
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