ABSTRACT
A funny thing has happened on the way to democracy: the indirect and confusing procedure of determining the nation’s chief executive-the Electoral Collegehas remained largely unchanged since it was ratified as part of the Constitution in 1789. For over two hundred years, the system of electors has been criticized for interfering with several political principles, most notably representation. Many elections have threatened to throw a race into the House or to select a president who did not win the most popular votes; a few elections have produced such outcomes. For decades, public opinion polls have shown that a majority of Americans favor changing or outright abolishing the Electoral College. Several large public associations have lobbied Congress to change the institution. Various state legislatures have sent memorials to Congress in support of reform and have considered legislation to change their own methods of determining electoral votes. Congressional members often propose constitutional amendments to alter or abolish the presidential electoral process. The Twelfth Amendment, added in 1804, made some modifications that accommodated nascent political parties, Congress clarified some procedural aspects in 1887, and several other constitutional amendments made slight changes to the presidential election process.1
