Journal Topic: The Russians and Censorship of Social Media Task: How concerned are you about this matter? What if anything can be done to address this issue?

Cornell Notes Unit: Political Process Topic: Electoral College Guiding Question: How is the President of the United States elected? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the electoral college?

I. Electoral College A. Established by the Constitution to elect the President of the United States B. Each state has the same number of electors as representatives in congress (270 of 538 to win a Presidential Election) C. If a candidate does not get a majority the vote goes to the house of representatives—this has happened twice. D. The founding fathers established this system for two reasons: 1. Thought it would be difficult for a candidate to campaign throughout the states and that special electors chosen by the State Legislators would be in a position to know Candidates from different regions 2. Federalism and the importance of states rights—especially smaller states

II. Flaws of the Electoral College A. The winner of the election may not win the popular vote. This has happened 5 times. (Recently with the Trump-Clinton race in 2016.) http://www.270towin.com/ B. Electors are not required to vote for the person the people in their state vote for C. The election could go to the House of Representatives were the election takes place by states

III. Reforms A. District Plan—1. Each state has 2 electors that vote with the majority of the state. 2. Each district elects representatives to cast votes in accordance with votes in the district. B. Proportional Plan—Candidates receive the same number of electoral votes as the percentage of the popular vote—Weaken the two party system C. Direct Popular Election—Difficult to pass. 1/3 plus one can veto a constitutional amendment in the congress. ¼ plus one can veto in the state legislators. D. National Bonus Plan—Same electoral college with a bonus pool of 102 electors given to the winner of the popular vote

IV. Advantages of the Current System A. It is known B. They identify the winner quickly C. Strong support of the principle of federalism D. Requires candidates to campaign in all states so urban and rural issues are address—Example—Bush campaigned on more rural issues and Gore campaigned on more urban issues. Candidates must go to all the states

Reading: Pros and Cons of the Electoral College Task: Read the article describing the pros and cons of the electoral college and address the following prompt. Mark the text identifying the main points of each argument. Guiding Question: What is the strongest argument in favor of the electoral college and what is the strongest argument opposing the electoral college? Explain.