Dear State Senator,

In my opinion, Im in favor of changing to election by popular vote for the president of the United States. At first I was all for keeping the Electoral College. But after reading the reasons why we shouldn't keep it I completly agree that we should change it.

"At the most basic level, the electoral college is unfair to voters. Because of the winner-take-all system in each state, candidates don't spend time in states they know they have no chance of winning, focusing only on the tight racs in the "swing" states." So basically the electoral college doesn't give a fair chance to voters and that's not right. All voters in every state should get a fair chance. "It's official: The electoral college is unfair, outdated, and irrational. The best arguments in favor of it are mostly assertions without much basis in reality. And the arguments against direct elections are spurious at best. It's hard to say this, but Bob Dole was right: Abolish the electoral college!"

"The Electoral College is widely regarded as an anachronism, a non-democratic method of selecting a president that ought to be [overruled] by declaring the candidate who receives the most popular votes the winner. The advocates of this position are correct in arguing that the Electoral College method is not democratic in a modern sense . . . it is the electors who elect the president, not the people." Which once again is not fair and isn't right. If people are taking the time to vote then they're the ones who should be picking who the president is. Not the electors. "When you vote for a presidential candidate you're actually voting for a slate of electors."

"The single best arguement against the electoral college is what we migh call the disaster factor. Consider that the state legislatures are technically responsible for picking electors, and that those electors could always defy the will of the people." This is an example: "In 1968, a shift of just 41,971 votes would have deadlocked the election; In 1976, a tie would have occurred if a mere 5,559 voters in Ohio and 3,687 voters in Hawaii had voted the other way. The election is only a few swing voters away from catastrophe."

Those are a couple great reasons and examples why you should change to election by popular vote for the president of the United States instead of keeping the Electoral College.

Sincerely,

Alexandria Longoria                                                     