>> It is antiquated in the Internet age.
I once thought that too. Back in the early 90s, I had extended online discussions supporting this concept, that is, online voting. The public Internet was, of course, in its infancy (this would have been in '91). Only after the '00 election did I do the reading to determine why the E.C. is necessary.
As it turned out, the issue of "counting the votes" is not a major player in the rationale for having the electoral college.
There are arguments both ways, but for me, the EC is essential. Otherwise, small areas of the country have disproportionate control.
For example, Manhattan occupies a minuscule piece of real estate, but would have more voting power than several states combined -- including the power to essentially "dictate" the politics used in smaller states like AR, AL, KS and MS, etc.
If you eliminate the EC, the entire country would effectively be controlled by people living in NYC, Chicago, LA, SFO, Philly, etc. The Founders recognized this fact, and specifically concluded the EC was necessary for that reason and others. |
