There are two unusual aspects of the system the U.S. uses to select its president (and vice president). The first is that the vote that really matters is the vote by the citizens of each state, rather than the total vote nationally. This is because the winner of the presidency is the one who gets a majority of the Electoral College votes, which are awarded state-by-state. An alternative, of course, would be to award the presidency to whomever wins the nation-wide popular vote.
The second is the way the Electoral College functions now: as essentially an automatic reflection of the popular vote in each State. That is very different from the way the Framers of the Constitution intended it to operate. Their original intent was described by Alexander Hamilton in Federalist Paper No. 68, which is posted on Blackboard (and available on the web). As he explains there, and as is also discussed in the course readings, the Framers intended for members of the Electoral College to use their best judgment in deciding who would be the best choice for the Presidency. Now, though, Electors are not expected to exercise any judgment at all, but rather to automatically vote (just like robots would) in accordance with the popular vote in their state. How and why this change occurred has been discussed in class, and is also discussed in both the Ellis and Edward, Wayne, and Mayer textbooks. Presidential Leadership, Politics and Policy Making, by George C. Edwards III, Kenneth R. Mayer, and Stephen J. Wayne, 11th edition (2020), published by Rowman & Littlefield. [Note: the prior edition of this textbook can also be used satisfactorily].
The Development of the American Presidency, by Richard J. Ellis, 3rd edition (Routledge, 2018)In this assignment, address both of these unusual aspects of the Electoral College and discuss and explain why you prefer one alternative over the other. That is, discuss and explain 1) why you think the presidency should be awarded based on either the current state-by-state method or by the nationwide popular vote, and 2) which you think is better: the original way, in which Presidential Electors deliberate and exercise their best judgment on who should be President, or the modern way, in which Electors are not expected to exercise any judgment but rather to vote automatically in accordance with the popular vote in their state.
In your essay, include at least two specific, substantive references to Hamiltons essay, and at least four specific, substantive references to points from the textbooks. Include page numbers with all references. References may be made to the course lectures also, but it not necessary to cite any outside sources unless it is helpful to your discussion.
The essay should be a minimum of 4 full pages in length (not counting the cover page, footnotes, endnotes, in-text citations, or notes/works cited page), double-spaced with 12 point font and one inch margins. Quotations should be kept brief; no quotation should be longer than 2 lines.
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