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Unit 2 government homework Crystal Shough Analyze criticism of the “Electoral College” system and the alleged advantages and disadvantages of various reform proposals. A brief of the Electoral College System. The Electoral College is an institution that elects the president and the vice president. According to Article 2, Section 1, Clause 2, there is appointed electors to vote for the president and vise president. Origins of the Electoral College.
The delegates were reluctant to set national voting standards for the federal elections as they believed this is a prerogative of the states. The convention finally settled on a plan which they called the Electoral College System. This system provides for the election of the president and vice president by the electors that have been appointed by each state which are determined by its legislature. This in return removed the elections from congress thus reinstating the separation of powers. The 12th Amendment.
The 12th Amendment started out saying that each elector would cast two votes for different people for president. The person that had the most votes got president and the one that had the next largestnumber of votes would be vice president. In time this didn’t work any more so the 12th Amendment was changed to where the electors only casted one vote for each president and vise president. Electoral Vote Allocation. The total number of electors in the College electoral system equals the total combined congressional representation of each state.
State and District of Columbia Appointment of Electors. Article 2, section1, Clause2 12th Amendment states that each state is required to appoint electors in the manor directed by its states legislator. Appointment Date and Meeting Date of Electors. Congress may chose the date for selecting there electors and it is mandatory to have the same date through out the states. Congress is also to chose the date in which the electors will meet and cast there ballots. Counting and Certification of Electoral Votes.
After the Electoral College delegations meet in there states and cast there votes the certified results are then transmitted to congress and to other designated authorities. On January 6th following theelection the Senate and the house of Representatives along with the president meet in joint session to count the votes and then the president and vice president are then declared. Any objections to any of the votes may be made by members of congress at the joint electoral vote count session. These objections must be presented in riting and signed by one senator and one representative to be in order. If a valid objection is raised the session recesses the senate returns to its own chambers and the two houses deliberate separately on the question. This is limited to two hours and each member is limited to five minutes of speaking time on the floor. At the end of the two hours the house and senate vote separately on the objection and the joint session reassembles. If both houses vote to sustain the objection, the electoral vote or votes in question are not counted. Electoral College Deadlock: Contingent Election.
If there is not a simple majority vote the president is chosen by the House of Representatives and the Vice President is chosen by the Senate by contingent election. Summary. The American voters elect the President and Vice President of the United States indirectly through the Electoral College System. The Electoral College System goes through a complex state of constitutional provisions, state and federal laws, and political party rules and practices. References. www. docstoc. com/docs/2375933/The-Electoral-College-An-Overview-and-Analysts-of-Reform-Proposals italy. usembassy. gov/pdf/other/RL30804. pdf