2016 Elections : Response Paper

When given this assignment I had no clue what topic I might choose. I waited and waited until the recent elections blew up in my face. This past election was a learning experience for me because I just turned 18. This was the first year I could ever vote and a weird election like this occurred. I noticed how many people were actually very disturbed with how Gore won the popular vote but will most likely lose the election only because he couldn't win enough electoral votes in one state.

Voting has not always been as easy as it is today. It is interesting to examine how far America has progressed in its process of allowing different types of people to be able to vote. Voting was once aimed at a particular group of people, which were white males that owned their own property. Today, most people over the age of eighteen can vote, except for the mentally incompetent or people who have been convicted of major felonies in some states. The decline of voter participation has always been a debate in the public arena. According to McDonald and Popkin, it is “the most important, most familiar, most analyzed, and most conjectured trend in recent American political history (2001, 963)” The question is, how important is voter

A debate has been brewing in recent years about the way we elect our president. The first system is the Electoral College which is very complicated. Americans are not knowledgeable about it and worry that one candidate can win the popular vote and not the Electoral College. The opponents of the Electoral College propose a new plan called the National Popular Vote (NPV). The pro-Electoral College party think the bill’s risks and costs are not worth the possibility of some gains for certain states.

The Electoral College was created in 1787 to protect this country’s voting system. It is a group of 538 members that directly cast the votes to determine who the next president will be. (Green) However, the issues of the present day can’t help but wonder, is the Electoral College’s system outdated and corrupt? My dialogue’s purpose is to defend the Electoral College and show how it still protects us to this day by using evidence from the most recent 2016 election, and prove that it gave us the best candidate suited for the role of the President of the United States.

The outcome of the 2016 election left many Americans feeling confused, angry, cheated, and terrified of the future. Somehow, the sexist, racist, homophobic candidate Donald Trump had become the nation’s president, though Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton received the majority of popular vote. This raised many questions over the constitutionality of the Electoral College system, and whether it was unfair to the people of the United States. In the electoral system, created by the Founding Fathers due to their lack of trust in the people, the constituents of each state vote for their preferred candidate, and all of the state’s electoral votes go to the candidate with a majority. Clearly, the Electoral

Politics: just the sound of this single word induces a variety of thoughts and facial expressions. Some embrace the inner workings of politics, while others leave the room immediately after hearing anything relating to it. Like it or not, politics is an integral part of the United States and affects our daily lives. Trying to avoid politics is like a stranded person in the desert swimming their way out of sand. Whether interesting or not, esteemed or despised, politics has become an especially frequent topic around the proverbial dinner table due to the recent presidential election. Among the most heated debates in the political scene arising from November’s election is whether the Electoral College should be abolished. Critics of the Electoral College contend the system is not a truly democratic tool and does not always reflect people’s will. However, others believe the Electoral College has performed sufficiently thus far. The Electoral College’s current format should be maintained because the Electoral College protects the nation from electing a president who appeals to only one region, ensures minority interests are still heard, and proposed alternatives for electing a president hold as many or more defects as the current Electoral College.

Rhetorical Analysis: The primary audience for this paper includes every citizen aged eighteen and above eligible to vote in the United States. The proposed topic mostly concerns these individuals due to the fact, they are affected by presidential voting institutions. Throughout this paper, I will be arguing in favor of the Electoral College, with an end goal of persuading my audience of the benefits of the system.

The distinguished contributors to this instructive volume - including Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Michael Barone, and Walter Berns- show why it would be foolish to abolish the Electoral College by explaining not only its historical and cultural significance, but also its present role in instilling a measure of stability and sanity to our electoral and party systems. This is the definitive volume for all those interested in the logic, and continuing importance of this unique American political institution.

Throughout the past presidential election, and many others, the ideal of electing the president by popular vote has been at an all-time high conversation topic compared to previous years. While many argue that the Electoral College defeats the purpose of voting, and diminishes the majority’s voice, this is certainly not the case. Without the Electoral College, elections would quickly become, and encourage, radical and corrupt ways in their voting systems, that could possibly result in a detrimental nationwide political crisis of voter fraud, and a rise to direct democracy.

Many people hail the Electoral College as democratic, but the 2016 Presidential Election was anything except democratic. The highly scrutinized leader, Donald J. Trump, won a majority of the Electoral College, sealing his place as the Forty-Fifth President of the United States, but did not receive the majority of votes, as the popular vote went to Hillary Clinton. The results of previous elections have not reflected the people’s opinions, and it disenfranchised millions of Americans. Although the Electoral College is outlined in the United States Constitution, it reflects the needs of an eighteenth century society (Amar, 2016). Because the Electoral College does not meet the needs of a twenty-first century society, it should be replaced by a national popular vote where voter registration is based on a test regarding basic knowledge of the United States government.

As election day rises, so does significant questions surrounding the Electoral College system. Mainly the subject of whether or not to disband the system will again be a hot topic amongst voters and legislatures. The question that remains in the minds of the everyday voter is if their vote actually counts toward appointing a President when a system such as the Electoral College is in place. Nevertheless, before forming an opinion on the matter it is important that one consider what the Electoral College actually is and how it functions, furthermore understanding why the framers of the Constitution thought it necessary to create this system. To properly form an opinion, avenues of critics and supporters must both be explored. Only through this considerable amount of information gathered can you take a stance on the topic.

With a Presidential election year upon us, the United States’ national election process will once again take its place at center stage of American politics. 200 years after the Electoral College’s creation, it still serves its intended purpose, but the increasing social and political awareness in America has caused a need to look at reform in this process. The question that should be asked by every citizen as they participate in the vote next year is if the Electoral College enables the wishes of the people to be truly represented? Reforming the practice of choosing the American President, though, would have Constitutional implications and the political philosophy of our country would be subject to much discussion. Through analyzing the

As politics and government becomes more complex and involved, more effort is required to keep up with and understand it. As a result, many Americans have lost touch with current events and happenings. Therefore, when election time rolls around, many people lack enough information to develop an educated opinion and support a candidate with their vote, so they just do not vote at all. This lack of information is also related to the belief that one vote will not matter. People believe that their vote will not count, and are therefore following the news less and becoming out of touch with public affairs and politics (Is the System Broken?”). This lack of information is also more strongly apparent among the younger voting population. When interviewed

Since the dawn of our nation, a carefully designed system has been in place for electing the president of the United States of America. Known as the electoral college, this process places emphasis on winning the popular vote in individual states, as opposed to winning it in the nation as a whole. However, this institution often comes under fire from all types of people in the country for what they believe to be its many flaws. Yet the system was installed by the founding fathers themselves, so it surely has to be perfect. Not necessarily, and that is the assumption every critic of the electoral college is working under. Several elections throughout America’s history has been considered controversial or

My challenge to everyone is to do your homework before voting. Don't just "wing it" and purely vote based on name recognition or what party is listed by someone's name.