Debunking the most common defenses of the Electoral College

Would getting rid of it really be so bad?

Voting.
(Image credit: Illustrated | undefined undefined/iStock, Tatiana Mezhenina/iStock, eyewave/iStock, vectorplusb/iStock)

The sometimes-hot, sometimes-cold argument about the Electoral College is hot again thanks to Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), the Democratic presidential candidate who seems intent on subduing her rivals with the sheer quantity of her policy proposals.

Her latest idea? Get rid of the Electoral College and instead elect the president of the United States directly, via a national popular vote.

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Joel Mathis, The Week US

Joel Mathis is a freelance writer who has spent nine years as a syndicated columnist, co-writing the RedBlueAmerica column as the liberal half of a point-counterpoint duo. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic, The Kansas City Star and Heatmap News. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.