Quote:
Originally posted by Eisenschwarz:
Could you please explain to me, how making someone’s vote count for more than someone else’s is fair or democratic?
(I don't live in America BTW)
"The result is that in 1988, for example, the combined voting age population (3,119,000) of the seven least populous jurisdictions of Alaska, Delaware, the District of Columbia, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming carried the same voting strength in the Electoral College (21 Electoral votes) as the 9,614,000 persons of voting age in the State of Florida. Each Floridian's potential vote, then, carried about one third the weight of a potential vote in the other States listed (Jackson County)."
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This is going to be a confused, rambling mess, but bear with me.
If you'll remove the 2 electoral votes of each state that are based on its senators from your example you'll find that the number of votes
is based on population, but of course, population alone isn't the only consideration in America.
No one’s vote counts more than anyone else's. My North Carolina vote should be no more important that someone's from Hawaii or Nevada, and no less important than someone's from Florida or California or New York.
Remember, the US Senate seats are not based on population. Every state gets two Senators and, therefore, an equal say in the Union. No matter how large or small the state, they receive equal representation on this level.
The House of Representatives' seats are based on population, so that large states do get their fair share of representation in that way.
When the founding fathers worked out this plan, they had to find something that would bring both large and small states together. Dividing the power between the house and the senate over population versus statehood is the compromise that was developed over 200 years ago, and it still works today. All states are equal under the US government and receive equal representation in the senate, while population provides for the level of representation in the House. It's the best of both worlds.
The House and Senate representatives of each state are a representation of population
and statehood. That's how the combined population votes of states are balanced against the fact that each state is important to the Union and equal within the Union. We have rights, not only as Americans, but also as citizens of our state, and as such, rural states are entitled to the same statehood benefits provided urban states. In this way, a number of smaller states
can rival the votes of a large one.
It may seem unfair on the surface, but if you’ll look deeper, you’ll see that the two electoral votes each state receives for their senators are actually “equalizing” votes. The entire Electoral process was implemented to balance the rights of large and small states.
And if that didn’t confuse you, nothing ever will…lol.
