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11/06/2024

Robert Natelson on the Electoral College
Michael Ramsey

At Law & Liberty, Robert Natelson: The Electoral College in Context.  From the introduction: 

Arguments about the Electoral College are often shallow. Opponents claim it is a relic of slavery and the product of the Founders’ distrust of democracy. They cite with approval James Wilson’s (purported) advocacy of direct presidential elections.

Proponents respond that the Electoral College prevents a few urban states from dominating presidential elections, and they sometimes cap their argument by asserting that the United States is a “republic not a democracy” (actually, it is both).

This shallowness helps account for why the debate over the Electoral College has been so repetitive and inconclusive. Neither side seems to understand fully why the Constitution’s framers constructed the presidential election system as they did. Nor do they take full account of the fact that the Electoral College is balanced and limited by the other three components of the Constitution’s presidential election mechanism. ...