Every once and awhile, like when Republicans defeat Democrats for president, there is a call to get rid of the Electoral College. There is a name for it, NPV, National Popular Vote. It is a scheme to circumvent the Constitution without laying a pen to it.
Since the 2000 U.S. presidential election, there have been many ill-informed calls to abolish the Electoral College. Even before that contentious election, there had been more than 700 proposals introduced in Congress to amend the Constitution to change the Electoral College—more than on any other topic.
The latest scheme, the National Popular Vote (NPV) plan, is bad public policy. The NPV plan would:
- Diminish the influence of smaller states and rural areas of the country;
- Lead to more recounts and contentious conflicts about the results of presidential elections; and
- Encourage voter fraud.
The NPV plan also strikes at the Founders’ view of federalism and a representative republic—one in which popular sovereignty is balanced by structural protections for state governments and minority interests.
Get ready for the next salvo from Democrats in Washington, Big Labor, and the Occupy Everywhere bunch should Obama lose the 2012 election.
Link: Destroying the Electoral College: The Anti-Federalist National Popular Vote Scheme
