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What are the benefits to the US Electoral College system? (lemmy.world)

submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by Boldizzle@lemmy.world to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

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So I'm a New Zealander and I have a pretty good idea on how the electoral college system works but it honestly sounds like something that can be easily corrupted and it feels like it renders the popular vote absolutely useless unless I'm totally missing something obvious?

So yeah if someone could explain to me what the benefits of such a system are, that would be awesome.

Edit - Thanks for the replies so far, already learning a lot!

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[–] Skoobie@lemmy.world 19 points 1 year ago (3 children)

EC is great when you've got too many people to tally votes efficiently. So basically it's only use since the advent of the telegraph is to ensure mega cities don't disproportionately affect rural locations via election results. With EC, rural states have more weight than they otherwise would. I still think we should switch to a popular vote for elections.

[–] Michal@discuss.tchncs.de 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

That doesn't sound like a benefit at all...

[–] Skoobie@lemmy.world 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

What doesn't? That rural states have more weight via the EC than they would in a popular vote? It's not a benefit to the country and citizens as a whole, but it is to those individual states.

[–] livus@kbin.social -3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

A dictatorship is not a benefit to the country and citizens as a whole, but it is to those individual dictators, too...

[–] Skoobie@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Right. Which is why I stated in my original comment that I am in favor of a popular majority vote...

Edit: typo

[–] livus@kbin.social -1 points 1 year ago

Sorry for confusion, thought you were saying it had a benefit.

My country has Mixed Member Proportional, which means even minorities get some level of representation. I prefer it to winner-takes-all systems like what we had when I was a kid.

[–] AnyProgressIsGood@lemmy.world 8 points 1 year ago

Between that the Senate and gerrymandering it's giving a huge bonus to the minority. Just imagine the legislation we could have

[–] cyclohexane@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I don't see how it tallies votes more efficiently? Bigger cities have more people to count, and typically are divided up too.

Mega cities not affecting rural locations is already done by having local government's

I know you said you still prefer popular vote, but jist wanted to voice my opinion.

[–] Skoobie@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago

Saying it's more efficient was meant to be a little tongue in cheek. It's not now. It was a few hundred years ago when communication was still done by horseback.

Having local governments does mitigate the effect megacities have on rural locations, yes, but not regarding national elections. An argument I've heard time and time again for keeping the EC is that without it, each president would be decided by NYC and LA.