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Politics

How Likely is an Electoral College Tie?

Could make the whole sad spectacle at least a little interesting

Reason Staff | 10.2.2012 11:16 AM

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Nate Silver reports that the possibility of an electoral college tie is a real possibility if President Obama holds the states Sen. John Kerry won in 2004 along with winning New Mexico and Ohio in addition.

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Reason Staff
PoliticsElection 2012Barack ObamaMitt Romney
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  1. ant1sthenes   13 years ago

    Interesting? It could be incredibly interesting, given the massive lack of respect the president has shown for the Constitution and particularly for Congressional authority. While I imagine he would step down peacefully if he lost a normal vote, if House Republicans kick him out, we might have a Constitutional crisis on our hands.

  2. Susan Anthony   13 years ago

    Presidential elections don’t (even possibly) have to be this way.

    The National Popular Vote bill would guarantee the Presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states (and DC).

    Every vote, everywhere, would be politically relevant and equal in presidential elections. No more distorting and divisive red and blue state maps. There would no longer be a handful of ‘battleground’ states where voters and policies are more important than those of the voters in 80% of the states that now are just ‘spectators’ and ignored after the conventions.

    When the bill is enacted by states possessing a majority of the electoral votes? enough electoral votes to elect a President (270 of 538), all the electoral votes from the enacting states would be awarded to the presidential candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states and DC.

    The bill uses the power given to each state by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution to change how they award their electoral votes for President.

    Americans believe that the candidate who receives the most votes should win.

    The bill has passed 31 state legislative chambers in 21 states. The bill has been enacted by 9 jurisdictions possessing 132 electoral votes – 49% of the 270 necessary to go into effect.

    NationalPopularVote
    Follow National Popular Vote on Facebook via NationalPopularVoteInc

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