As representation and education have increased for the people of the United States, the electoral college should not be the way to choose the president of the United States.
According to history.com, the electoral college was established by the Founding Fathers of the United States mainly as a result of most of the population not being educated and rural areas unable to receive much information about candidates to make a decision.
The population would vote, but electors would make their own, more educated decisions for the people. The electors that vote for different candidates, misrepresenting the population, are called “faithless electors,” according to the National Archives and Records Administration.
The Census Bureau states that 90% of the American population aged 25 and older had received at least a high school diploma in 2017, an increase from 24% in 1940. The education rates for Americans have risen, as a result of more compulsory education laws and the need for at least a high school education for most jobs.
Since Americans are more educated, the concerns of the Founding Fathers do not apply, as they are able to make decisions about candidates. As well, the Founding Fathers most probably did not expect the advance in technology to go so far that even rural areas could follow current events.
Swing states also have more importance placed onto them as they can vote either way. Candidates logically spend most of their time campaigning in these states because they know that certain states constantly vote for a particular political party. Instead of going to states that vote for the opposition, the candidate would spend time in the states that have the most electoral votes that they have a chance to win over.
Even states that have the highest amounts of electoral college votes are still underrepresented in the electoral college compared to smaller states.
Wyoming has a population of 577,738, according to the 2018 US Census Bureau, and 3 electoral college votes. The ratio of electors to voters is about 1: 200,000.
California has a population of 39.56 million, according to the Census Bureau, and 55 electoral votes. The ratio of electors to voters for California is about 1 : 700,000.
Wyoming’s electoral votes stand for less people than California’s votes, and therefore are worth more than California’s votes according to the electoral college.
Votes hold less value in more urban areas, which in turn lowers the value of minority votes. The most populated cities in the United States are New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago, all of which have more than half non-white populations, according to worldpopulationreview.com. All three cities are in the top five states with the most electoral votes.
Although there are several complications in abolishing the electoral college, according to npr.org, states can still bypass them. States can agree to put all of their electoral college votes towards whoever wins the national popular vote.