Framers' Design for Electoral College and Today
Time for Reform?
Lesson II. Historical Development of Electoral College
Step 2. Pros and Cons
Consider the pros and cons to the Electoral College. Which pros and cons of the Electoral College appeal to you? Can you think of other pros and cons?
Pro:
Keeps states important in national campaigning, a key component of federalism.
Con:
A candidate can lose the popular vote, but win the Electoral College and become the U.S. president.
Pro:
Encourages national campaigning. Every state is important in an election, so candidates campaign across states instead of only focusing on the most populous cities.
Con:
Candidates focus most of their campaigning on states with higher Electoral College votes, such as: California, New York, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Georgia and Virginia
Pro:
Encourages coalition building across the United States instead of candidates only focusing on one region of the country.
Con:
It makes individual votes in smaller populated states have a greater impact on the election than individual votes in higher populated states.
