Electoral College vs Popular Vote

[gr8indoorsman]

,
Issue is out of the top eleven populated states four of them (CA/IL/NJ/NY) are states that the Republicans do not campaign much or even bother to have much a of a ground game. Start campaigning, build a ground game, and that one million votes disappears pretty quick IMO.

Eh, that's not entirely true. Trump came to OC and San Diego because there are votes to be gained here. Republicans do pretty well in SoCal relative to NorCal, and the entire eastern 3/4s of the state not including Sacramento is red. I think once you get into the NorCal echo chamber, it's not going to matter much how much time Republicans spend up there. Demographics and hippies don't favor them up there.

Voter turnout in a lot of California is already good because we vote on so many ballot measures (20 this year for me, and more like 30 for those in San Diego city) in addition to our candidates.

 

[SDBoiler1]

Eh, that's not entirely true. Trump came to OC and San Diego because there are votes to be gained here. Republicans do pretty well in SoCal relative to NorCal, and the entire eastern 3/4s of the state not including Sacramento is red. I think once you get into the NorCal echo chamber, it's not going to matter much how much time Republicans spend up there. Demographics and hippies don't favor them up there.

Voter turnout in a lot of California is already good because we vote on so many ballot measures (20 this year for me, and more like 30 for those in San Diego city) in addition to our candidates.

Orange County used to be reliably R for years. Not sure if that's still true.

Eureka is Bernie Sanders territory, if there ever was such a place.

 

[destewart]

ok, help me out and make the argument for keeping it or changing it.
i used to think and understand the advantages of the electoral college, but as time has passed, i think i am becoming more unsure and on the fence.

-as long conservative, i know a primary argument for Rs is that they would never win.
but since this has only ever happened 5 times now, that does not seem to be the case historically.

-i'm beginning to not even see it as a partisan issue either.
wouldn't Rs in new york or california feel about as frustrated as Ds in utah or wyoming?

-what if a major state changes
what if say texas would ever flip to D on a regular basis (as trump received 53% this time, lowest since '96 i believe).
with CA, NY, and TX, that would be almost insurmountable to Rs, and i bet they'd change the common stance.

-battleground states
some argue that campaigns would only pander and pay attention to major cities.
doesn't the equivalent essentially happen now with just a handful of battleground states receiving most of the attention each cycle?
.
-founding fathers
a few random books i've read recently reference the aspect of the electoral representatives, and the founders desire of avoiding affects of mob-rule, the public being duped, etc.
but today reps always follow the people's vote anyway.

-winner take all
since there is no constitutional mandate, why do more states not choose to split up votes like maine, nebraska?

Trump won Electoral College by 25% and was the highest ever by a loser of the popular vote. He won 30 states to 20 for Clinton.

 

[SDBoiler1]

Trump won Electoral College by 25% and was the highest ever by a loser of the popular vote. He won 30 states to 20 for Clinton.

The difference in popular vote is all CA.

 

[destewart]

The difference in popular vote is all CA.

Of course. If you go back to pre-election some of our Liberal friends guffawed when I point out that Obama beat Romney by 5 million votes and 4.6 of them came from California and New York, while he won 24 other states by 400,000 votes, or 16,166 per state.

 

[gr8indoorsman]

Orange County used to be reliably R for years. Not sure if that's still true.

Still is for the most part.

 

[terminalg92]

Notice who is in favor of this...Democrats. Democrats believe that if the country ever goes to directly electing the President by popular vote, they'll never lose the White House again. It's only the nasty, vile, tricksy Electoral College that prevents them from unassailable control of the White House...and they hates it...they hates it FOREVER!

A more effective use of time for Democrats (rather than fighting the Electoral College) would seem to be figuring out ways to better connect with between-the-coasts voters.

 

[destewart]

A more effective use of time for Democrats (rather than fighting the Electoral College) would seem to be figuring out ways to better connect with between-the-coasts voters.

When they reelect Pelosi it will only confirm how out of touch they are with the mood of the country.

 

[BoilerBiker]

The difference in popular vote is all CA.

are you suggesting that is good, bad, ... ?

i mentioned it earlier, but with california's lower vote count,
their electoral college contribution outweighed their total popular vote contribution this year,
~10% of the electoral, to only 8% of the popular vote.
this was the highest state differential weighted more favorably towards the electoral college.