1. Electoral College Compromise solution at Constitutional Convention
Founders didn’t trust Congress (Parliamentary)
Founders didn’t trust the people (demos = mob)
Kept states involved in Presidential election (each state legislature decides how electors are chosen)
Electors were intended to be independent thinkers

2. Electoral College
Jefferson formed Republican party in 1796 to secure vote in Electoral College
Number of electors equal to each state’s # Representatives + 2 Senators
12th Amendment required President & Vice President to run as team
23rd Amendment allowed D.C. to be represented in Electoral College with 3 electors

3. Presidential Elections
Popular vote is for electors, not president, even though President’s name appears on ballot
Popular vote may differ from vote in Electoral College (e.g. Jackson in 1820, Gore in 2000)
48 states send electors with commitment to popular will of statewide vote (general-ticket system)
2 states (Maine, Nebraska) commit electors to vote of Congressional district (similar to proportional representation--state may be split)

4. Electoral College
Mathematical advantage either to very large or very small states
Possible to win with 13 states:
CA(54), NY(33), TX(32), FL(25), PA(23), IL(22), OH(21), MI(18), VA(13), GA(13), IN(12), TN(11), WI(11), MO(11), WA(11)
Possible to win with small states (e.g. George W. Bush) because small states are guaranteed 3 electors
In 2000, Gore won CA with 54 electors and 5.7 million votes; Bush won 13 of 19 smallest states with 54 electors but only 2.7 million votes

5. Electoral College
Once party conventions meet, nominees have ten to fifteen weeks to persuade voters before November election
Emphasis is on securing 270 Electoral College votes (triage strategy with limited time and money)
Ignore states that one is guaranteed to win
Ignore states one is guaranteed to lose
Ignore states with few electors
Focus on swing states and states with many electors
Exceptions:
As race got close, Gore pressured Bush in Florida
Bush pressured Gore in Tennessee and won

6. Electoral College
Critics charge that Electoral College system violates political equality principle (one person, one vote)
30 million people in California control only 54 electoral votes
Several reform proposals but only direct popular election would address issue of political equality
Electoral College proponents argue that system supports outcome in close popular elections when candidate receives only plurality of popular vote but clear majority in Electoral College (e.g. Clinton in 1992) -- enhances legitimacy
It also gives power to states and idea of federalism

7. Political Campaigns Influenced by: office being sought
status of candidate (incumbent or challenger)
party affiliation and district preference
demographics, SES, character & size of district
financing & independent resources

8. Political Campaigns continued
Strategies directed at persuading voters based on:
party loyalty
position on issues
character or image of candidate
Tactics focus on:
message content (negative, comparative)
mode of delivery (debate, q&a, etc.)

9. Federal Election Campaign Act
Passed in 1971 but Nixon spent $65M in 1972 to get re-elected; some went to jail
If raise $5K (<=$250 each) in 20 states, then government matches up to 1/2 spending limit
Spending limit now
$30.9M + $6.2M = $37.1M in primary
$61.8M in main election (if Democrat or Republican; less for minor parties that received less than 25% popular vote in previous election)
party can receive $12.4M for conventions

10. Congressional Elections
Influenced by Congressional district demographics
state legislatures determine districts
Supreme Court has changed position on “racial redistricting”
Also influenced by:
first-past-the-post process
voter preference for divided (weak) govt.
Favors pluralist model of democracy

11. Congressional Elections
Political equality and Congressional districts
Constitution requires decennial census in order to calculate number of representatives
In 1790, 105 representatives in House (1 for every 33,000 people--constitution stipulates no fewer than 30,000)
In 1910, House of Representatives had 435 members (roughly 1 for every 200,000 people)
In 1990, 1 House member represented 620,000 people (if evenly divided--or 647,000 after 2000)

12. Congressional Elections
Reapportionment redistributes 435 House members among 50 states
Redistricting changes boundaries of Congressional districts within states
Single member district system allows winner-take-all format (not multi-member districts)
Since Baker v. Carr (1962), U.S. Supreme Court requires districts of relatively equal size to ensure equal protection of the law (14th Amendment) or one person, one vote

13. Congressional Elections
State legislatures are responsible for redistricting
Political gerrymandering is acceptable
Racial gerrymandering has been overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court
Uncomfortable resemblance to political apartheid..
Obligation is to represent constituency as a whole, not members of one race
Antithetical to system of representative democracy

14. Financing Congressional Campaigns
U.S. Supreme Court overturned spending limits in Congressional campaigns in Buckley v. Valeo (1976)...money is speech
Upheld limits on contributions--same as in presidential campaigns ($1K individual, $5k PACs)
Independent (nonaffiliated) PACs have no limit
Finance rules favor incumbents, although some PACs “hedge bets” and contribute to both
Rules decrease accountability & competition, and limit access by individuals