What two traits do all advocates for the elimination of the Electoral College have in common?

1. They are members of the Democratic Party whose candidate lost the 2000 and 2016 elections.

2. They are ignorant or contemptuous of the protections provided by the Electoral system against the tyranny of democracy.

The USA is a republic, not a democracy.  We are a union of States, not a collection of individuals.  The electoral system was created to protect the individual States and their citizens from the dangers posed by pure democracy  —  “the tyranny of the majority.”  Most of us learned this concept in 10th grade Civics!  Many have forgotten.

Without the Electoral College, future presidential elections will be decided by a handful of large, (liberal), urban areas:  New York, Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, etc.  The rest of us – Maine included – will have no voice, no influence, and no representation in the White House.  Presidential candidates will campaign solely in these large metropolitan areas.  The voices and needs of those of us in “flyover country” will be ignored.

Walter E. Williams recently wrote a brilliant, brief analysis on the subject: https://www.dailysignal.com/2018/01/17/republic-not-democracy

As Dr. Williams notes, “The Founders expressed contempt for the tyranny of majority rule, and throughout our Constitution, they placed impediments to that tyranny. (For example,) two houses of Congress pose one obstacle to majority rule.”

Additionally, he states “the Founding Fathers went to great lengths to ensure that we were a republic and not a democracy. In fact, the word democracy does not appear in the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, or any other of our founding documents.”

Paul Israelson

Biddeford