As members of the Electoral College meet in their respective states Monday, a new Politico/Morning Consult poll finds that a 46 percent plurality of voters say the electors should be bound to vote for the candidate who won their state, which would give Donald Trump a 306-232 victory over Hillary Clinton; 34 percent said that electors should vote for another candidate if they have significant concerns, and the other 20 percent were undecided. The poll split along partisan lines, with more Democrats supporting elector choice and more Republicans favoring sticking with whomever won the state.
There was a similar partisan split when it came to the question of scrapping the Electoral College, only this time, a 46 percent plurality of all voters contacted favored amending the Constitution to replace the Electoral College with a popular vote for president, while 40 percent wanted to keep the Electoral College intact. Coincidentally, 46 percent is also the amount of the popular vote Trump won, versus 48.1 percent for Clinton. Morning Consult reached 2,000 voters Dec. 15-17, and the poll has a 2 percentage point margin of error.
If you are undecided, you can watch CNN's John King explain the Electoral College and its rationale below. Peter Weber
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Critics’ choice: Watering holes for gourmandsFeature An endless selection of Mexican spirits, a Dublin-inspired bar, and an upscale Baltimore pub
-
Argentinian beef is at the center of American farmers’ woesThe Explainer ‘It feels like a slap in the face to rural America,’ said one farmer
-
‘Businesses that lose money and are uncompetitive won’t survive’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Senate votes to kill Trump’s Brazil tariffSpeed Read Five Senate Republicans joined the Democrats in rebuking Trump’s import tax
-
Border Patrol gets scrutiny in court, gains power in ICESpeed Read Half of the new ICE directors are reportedly from DHS’s more aggressive Customs and Border Protection branch
-
Shutdown stalemate nears key pain pointsSpeed Read A federal employee union called for the Democrats to to stand down four weeks into the government standoff
-
Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
