Those suspicious of small-state influence in the early stages of the American presidential race should also be alarmed by the disproportionate clout of the biggest states in the final count. I’m talking about the Electoral College, which has – even in modern times – given the presidency to the second-place winner in the popular vote, possibly even played into fraudulent results. Think of the George W. Bush “victories,” for starters.
For a starker perspective, consider that it’s theoretically possible for a tad over 25 percent of the American voters to elect a president. All it takes is 50 percent of the ballots, plus one vote, in each of the 11 states that hold 50 percent of the Electoral Votes. Yes, that’s 11 states in total: California, Texas, Florida, New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, and New Jersey.
The only thing that’s spared us so far is that these states haven’t lined up together and seem unlikely to so in the near future. But I still find the possibility scary.
This piece is very important, and the point you make should have been drilled into every citizen as school kids. Unfortunately many, if not most, of these minions are never taught to understand and assimilate the political system. Of course that is the whole point–keep them occupied with sports and television stars to maintain the status quo. It scares the hell out of me!
Absolutely excellent writing and yes, it is so scary. Thank you for writing this very important piece and I hope everyone reads it!