Presidential Elections and Majority Rule: The Rise, Demise, and Potential Restoration of the Jeffersonian Electoral College

by Edward B. Foley

The Electoral College that governs America has been with us since 1804, when Thomas Jefferson's supporters redesigned it for his re-election. The Jeffersonians were motivated by the principle of majority rule. Gone were the days when a president would be elected by acclamation, as George Washington had been. Instead, given the emergence of intense two-party competition, the Jeffersonians wanted to make sure that the Electoral College awarded the presidency to the candidate of the majority, rather than minority, party. They also envisioned that a candidate would win by amassing a majority of Electoral College votes secured from states where the candidate's party was in the majority.

For most of American history, this system has worked as intended, producing presidents who won Electoral College victories derived from state-based majorities. In the last quarter-century, however, there have been three significant aberrations from the Jeffersonian design: 1992, 2000, and 2016. In each of these years, the Electoral College victory depended on states where the winner received only a minority of votes.

In this authoritative history of the American Electoral College system, Edward Foley analyzes the consequences of the unparalleled departure from the Jeffersonians' original intent-and delineates what we can do about it. He explains how states, by simply changing their Electoral College procedures, could restore the original Jeffersonian commitment to majority rule. There are various ways to do this, all of which comply with the Constitution. If only a few states had done so before 2016, the outcome might have been different. Doing so before future elections can prevent another victory that, contrary to the original Jeffersonian intent, a majority of voters did not want.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, History

256 pages, Hardcover

Published January 2, 2020

About the author

Edward B. Foley directs the election law program at Ohio State University, where he also holds the Ebersold Chair in Constitutional Law. Previously, Foley clerked for Chief Judge Patricia M. Wald of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and Justice Harry Blackmun of the United States Supreme Court. He has also served as State Solicitor in the office of Ohio's Attorney General, where he was responsible for the state's appellate and constitutional litigation. He is the author of the acclaimed book Ballot Battles: The History of Disputed Elections in the United States (Oxford University Press) and co-author of Election Law and Litigation: The Judicial Regulation of Politics.

Reviews

[Suzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Told me everything I needed to know about the electoral college and.. way, way more. It's a bit dry with rundowns of how every state conducted elections in every election where the electoral college played a role, but ultimately it was a good read because I learned more about why the electoral college *can* work and why it doesn't in its current state.

[Mariam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent explanation/ justification for majority rule, examples from history described in detail, and original recommendations for reform. This was a book for thinking outside the box and outside the repeated chants for doing away with the Electoral College, something many agree is unlikely, desirable as it may seem. It also appeals to me that these proposals would allow for a true 3rd party challenger with enough support. If I had any suggestions for improving the book, it would be to spend a little more time describing the different alternatives proposed, like instant runoffs and Condorcet elections.

[Why-why · Rating 4 out of 5]

A strong argument for the electoral college I never knew existed. How is it possible that the President can be elected with less than a majority vote?! How in the world did we ever let it get this way... Yipes.

I had always been for getting rid of the electoral college, that it's just an antiquated remnant of the elitist view of the masses being too dumb to understand politics for themselves. But alas, the problem of a non-majority winner in a 3 or more split race remains, regardless of direct elections.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brief overview of the establishment of the electoral college and the subsequent 12th amendment. The rest is an interpretation of the amendment and whether or not our elections since have abided by it, arguing presidents should be required to obtain a majority vote to be elected to office over a mere plurality.

[Alex Kutschke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall makes sense, good perspective on how the lack of a majority requirement has caused situations where the minority preferred candidate has won. That said, the prose is repetitive, making the same point over and over again.

[Mr. Book · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was never expecting this one to be so good. I was expecting this book to be the typical discussion of the electoral college. Instead, the author focused on how Jefferson instended for his 12th Amendment reforms to work. That led to this being of the most fascinating books on the topic that I have ever read.

I started off thinking that I knew a lot about the topics of electoral college and presidential elections, but I kept on learning fascinating new information,

I prefer to grade on a letter grade and one easily gets an A+, which also means it gets inducted into my Hall of Fame. An A+ converts to it also getting 5 stars at Goodreads,

The book was so enjoyable that, shortly after I finished reading it, I also listened to the Audible edition.