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why did the founding fathers create the electoral college?

b. The Founding Fathers were the leading statesmen during the American Revolution and the formation of the United States . So problems will persist, and the states will continue pushing voter rights toward extremes in both directions. He then traveled to France, where he secured French assistance for the war effort and helped negotiate the 1783 Treaty of Paris, the official end to the conflict. In the beginning of the American Revolution, Franklin was appointed to the five-member committee that drafted the Declaration of Independence. Before he fought against the British, George Washington fought for the British, serving as a commander in the French and Indian War. It is said that the Founding Fathers were, tired, impatient, [and] frustrated. Just prior to his death, Franklin served as a sort of elder statesman at the Constitutional Convention. Does it protect us from fraud? I am a civics educator who has also run Purdue Universitys Constitution Day celebration for 15 years, and one lesson I always return to is the degree to which the founders had to compromise in order to ensure ratification. All Rights Reserved. Since the late 1990s a surge of new books on the Founding Fathers, several of which have enjoyed surprising commercial and critical success, has begun to break free of the hyperbolic pattern and generate an adult rather than adolescent conversation in which a sense of irony and paradox replaces the old moralistic categories. They believed that the electors would ensure that only a qualified person became president. Hamilton and the other founders were reassured that with this compromise system, neither public ignorance nor outside influence would affect the choice of a nations leader. After translating an article, all tools except font up/font down will be disabled. AMU is the nations top provider of online education to the U.S. military and offers 200+ degree and certificate programs including Homeland Security, Intelligence, Emergency and Disaster Management, Criminal Justice, Cybersecurity, Business, Management, and more. Maybe the U.S. will go down in history as a Rome repeated, but it does not have to. Accessible across all of today's devices: phones, tablets, and desktops. Some delegates thought getting states directly involved in picking the leader of the national government was a good approach for the new federal system. Official U.S. literature on the system reads: Each state elects the number of representatives to the Electoral College that is equal to its number of Senatorstwo from each stateplus its number of delegates in the House of Representatives. Significantly, the creation of the Electoral College was not thought to be perfect by any means, but it satisfied the opposing camps (one argued that Congress should pick the president, while another insisted on the popular vote). Had no agreement been reached, the delegates would not have approved the Constitution. You canread my articleon that topic - on how to think through those hard decisions. Founding Fathers: Quotes, Facts & Documents - HISTORY Mitigating the Threat of Domestic Terrorism and Extremism, Why Social Media Is So Appealing to Terrorist Organizations, The Islamic State and Examining the Spectrum of Conflict, Linda Malcoms Case Heats Up: More Investigators & Evidence Testing, National Police Week: Honoring the Work of Police Officers, Fighting for the Victims of Unsolved Crimes with Bill Thomas. Did Afghanistan Harbor al-Qaida Terrorist Ayman al-Zawahiri? The reasons the Founding Fathers created the Electoral College are no longer relevant. But the original system in which the winner of the Electoral College would become president and the runner-up became vice president fell apart almost immediately. Political parties change, their platforms are always being tweaked by the grassroots, and even swing states change from election to election. Corrections? These delegates did not believe the common people would have enough knowledge to make a . By continuing to use this site, you consent to the terms of our cookie policy, which can be found in our. First - we have to understand the concern of our Founders as they deliberated day after day concerning the founding of our nation. Articles with the HISTORY.com Editors byline have been written or edited by the HISTORY.com editors, including Amanda Onion, Missy Sullivan, Matt Mullen and Christian Zapata. A lawyer, he originally preferred reconciling with Britain rather than fighting for independence. As of this writing, passage of the For the People Act is questionable. He later served as vice president to John Adams prior to becoming president, himself, in 1801. Founding Fathers, the most prominent statesmen of America's Revolutionary generation, responsible for the successful war for colonial independence from Great Britain, the liberal ideas celebrated in the Declaration of Independence, and the republican form of government defined in the United States Constitution. Another reason is that that what smaller states would have a stronger representation and the framers believed that smaller states should be supported. In creating the Electoral College system, the Framers specifically sought to eliminate the potentially divisive influence of partisan politics from the electoral process. What might look like a solid blue state like Texas before 1998 is now a solid red state. Global Flashpoints in 2023: Where Can We Expect Conflict? Why did the founding fathers create the electoral college? The first reason that the founders created the Electoral College is hard to understand today. Two maps of the states clearly show which states are pushing voter suppression and which are expanding their citizens ability to vote. It was devised by the framers of the United States Constitution to provide a method of election that was feasible, desirable, and consistent with a republican form of government. Why is it a better system than a straight majority vote? Now they vote overwhelmingly for Democrats statewide. Students explore how science and philosophy work together to build a better world and how they can help us gain a better understanding of what it means to be human. "The Electoral College system . Two things are known for certain following the 2020 presidential election. Once the Revolutionary War broke out in 1775, he was placed in charge of the Continental Army and soon suffered a near-disastrous defeat at the Battle of Brooklyn. Podcast: The Next 9/11 Will be a Cyberattack, How to Maintain Your Cybersecurity as Youre Traveling, Cybersecurity Training Is Essential in Healthcare, LiFi: A Better Way to Ensure Cybersecurity on Computers, The Role of Blockchain and Cryptocurrency in Web 3.0, Podcast: Insight into a Career as a Systems Architect. What Clues Does the Fire Reveal About Linda Malcoms Murder? As long as the United States endures as a republican government established in the late 18th century, all Americans are living the legacy of that creative moment and therefore cannot escape its grand and tragic implications. Within the broader world of popular opinion in the United States, the Founding Fathers are often accorded near mythical status as demigods who occupy privileged locations on the slopes of some American version of Mount Olympus. Showing foresight, they included a Bill of Rights, which enshrined many civil liberties into law and provided a blueprint for other emerging democracies. In much the same way that adolescents view their parents, the Founders are depicted as heroic icons or despicable villains, demigods or devils, the creators of all that is right or all that is wrong with American society. If anything, these numbers seem to illustrate just how divided the country is on voting. 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The Electoral College forces the presidential candidates to pursue every state and build broad coalitions that encompass not only the extremes of the political parties on the right or the left, but the middle positions as well. Abigail Adams, Dolley Madison, and Mercy Otis Warren, among others, all made significant contributions to the founding of the country as well. All the Founding Fathers, including the first four U.S. presidents, at one point considered themselves British subjects. ch7 quiz Flashcards | Quizlet Education Due to a lack ofschooling available in the 1700s, the founding fathersbelieved the average citizen to not be intelligent enough tounderstand the complex ideas of government. That president, John Adams, a . California used to vote Republican - remember California gave us Governor and then President Ronald Reagan? Ignorance on an issue does not mean abolish it, but so many times our lack of education colors our viewpoints. Start a degree at American Military University. Alexander Hamilton wrote, "If the manner of it be not perfect, it is at least excellent.". Press Esc to cancel. Electoral College Flashcards | Quizlet There is a nearly unanimous consensus that George Washington was the Foundingest Father of them all. Memorial Day: Which Servicemember Do You Plan to Honor? Here are eight of the most influential characters in Americas origin story. 4. The first purpose was to create a buffer between population and the selection of a President. Listen to Ross discuss these issues on "The Church Boys" podcast at the 3-minute mark here. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. The obvious question is which side would have the support of our Founding Fathers? Not Your Founding Fathers' Electoral College - U.S. News & World Report At the beginning, six of the 11 members preferred national popular elections. Although the list of members can expand and contract in response to political pressures and ideological prejudices of the moment, the following 10, presented alphabetically, represent the gallery of greats that has stood the test of time: John Adams, Samuel Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Marshall, George Mason, and George Washington. 26 Decade-Defining Events in U.S. History, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Founding-Fathers, Founding Fathers - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11), Founding Fathers - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up), Asher B. Durand: portrait of James Madison, George Mason, detail of an oil painting by L. Guillaume after a portrait by J. Hesselius; in the collection of the Virginia Historical Society, Washington, D.C.: Thomas Jefferson Memorial. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. This is a hard argument to refute and people on both sides are fretting over what would happen if more of them were elected to political office. Ukraine to Receive New Tanks: Ramifications for Russia, Poland Improves Its Position as a Powerful Nation, Peru: Internal Unrest Reduces Hope for a Stable Government, How Colombias Largest Drug Cartel Creates Chaos for Officers, The ICJ Rules on the Colombia v. 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Joseph Sohm What exactly is the electoral college and why did the Founding Fathers embrace it instead of creating a direct presidential voting process? And much of the scholarly work focusing on the Founders has emphasized their failures more than their successes, primarily their failure to end slavery or reach a sensible accommodation with the Native Americans. FactCheck.org agrees with this assessment as well. Advertisement 1 that the Electoral College protects the country from electing someone ill-equipped for the office or a tyrant. Others were concerned that this approach threatened the separation of powers created in the first three articles of the Constitution: Congress might choose a weak executive to prevent the president from wielding veto power, reducing the effectiveness of one of the systems checks and balances. In 1789, he became the first chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, and six years later he was elected governor of New York. At the time, the country had just . The Brennan Center reported 28 bills have already been signed into law in 14 states with some 115 moving through the process in 25 states. These are just two questions that attorney and author Tara Ross a staunch defender of the electoral college system passionately answered in a recent appearance on "The Church Boys" podcast. Please select which sections you would like to print: Joseph Ellis, a professor of history at Mount Holyoke since 1972, is one of the nation's foremost scholars of American history. Early Americas foremost Renaissance man, Benjamin Franklin was a skilled author, printer, scientist, inventor and diplomat, despite a formal education that ended at age 10. Does the US Press Mirror Our Current Political Divide? Founding Fathers, the most prominent statesmen of Americas Revolutionary generation, responsible for the successful war for colonial independence from Great Britain, the liberal ideas celebrated in the Declaration of Independence, and the republican form of government defined in the United States Constitution. According to experts, there arefour consensus reasons to as why the foundingfathers established the Electoral College. Some delegates at the Constitutional Convention thought that letting Congress pick the president would provide a buffer from what Thomas Jefferson referred to as the well-meaning, but uninformed people who, in a nation the size of the United States, could have no knowledge of eminent characters and qualifications and the actual selection decision.. All Rights Reserved. Any state can be flipped by any candidate or political party at any time if their message resonates with their broad audience. What about the historical election of George W. Bush over Al Gore in 2000 - where again Al Gore won the popular vote but eventually lost the election was that election outcome wrong? Just like Franklin, he served on the committee that wrote the Declaration of Independence, journeyed overseas to secure French military aid and helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris. Not nearly as recognized as his Founder cohorts, John Jay nonetheless played a pivotal role in the creation of the United States. The founders of America were concerned about large states having more power than small states which is why they established equal representation in the Senate for every state and also gave them power in the Electoral College. This recent scholarship is heavily dependent on the massive editorial projects, ongoing since the 1960s, that have produced a level of documentation on the American Founders that is more comprehensive and detailed than the account of any political elite in recorded history. Why did they create the Electoral College? - Wise-Answer They believed that a tyrant could manipulate public opinion. We Elect a President: The Story of Our Electoral College, A Jeopardy! clip goes viral amid Titan submersible tragedy, What we know about Russias armed rebellion and its aftermath, Celeste Maloy wins Utah Republican convention, advances in effort to replace Rep. Chris Stewart. These three quotes from the Founding. Although their personalities, politics, and worldviews tended to differ drastically, the Founding Fathers were united in their rejection of British despotism and their belief in a better, fairer world that would adhere to robust democratic principles and values. The problem was resolved in 1804 when the 12th Amendment was ratified, allowing the electors to cast separate ballots for president and vice president. The Electoral College was created for two reasons. In recent years the Founder whose reputation has been tossed most dramatically across this swoonish arc is Thomas Jefferson, simultaneously the author of the most lyrical rendition of the American promise to the world and the most explicit assertion of the supposed biological inferiority of African Americans. The Biden Administration Needs to Fix the Immigration Courts, Recognizing Human Trafficking in the United States, Border Apprehensions Drop Due to Crackdown and Summer Heat, Trump Asylum Policy in Limbo as Federal Judges Issue Opposing Rulings, Border Fence: Trump Pushes For A Potentially Harmful (But Pleasing To The Eye) Wall, Shirley Chisholm: A Political Pioneer and an Inspiration, The Impacts of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Sign up for The Conversations newsletter.]. Founding Fathers - Kids | Britannica Kids | Homework Help The Founding Fathers knew they wanted their leader to have limited power. They cobbled together this plan because they couldnt agree on anything else. For the results of U.S. presidential elections, see the table. In all, lawmakers have introduced at least 389 restrictive bills in 48 states in the 2021 legislative sessions, the Brennan Center noted. The author also believes people tend to appreciate the process more as they learn how it all works. The Constitution of the United States: A Transcription. He is aptly known as the Father of His Country.. Socrates and Plato hated democracy, but no rational person would want to live in Platos Republic with its severe censorship and divisions into a clear caste system. Box 472655, Garland, TX 75047, With our Electoral College system- candidates must message around a host of issues and communicate to a diverse audience because every state matters, Every freedom loving American who wants liberty to reign, who wants every voter to be valued, and who understands the importance of power to keep checked should appreciate and support the Electoral College system, WhyWe Need the Electoral College by Tara Ross. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Congress never prohibited this slave trade. One reason for the Electoral College was that the founding fathers believed that popular vote can be manipulated. Many of the Founding Fathers were well schooled in ancient history and its lessons. The death of Socrates is a tragic example of what can happen when the wrong people vote.

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