The History of the Electoral College for Kids
By Chelsea Baldwin, eHow Contributor
The idea of the Electoral College may be a bit difficult for some children to understand, especially when they understand the idea that in a democracy, every vote should count; however, taking the time to explain the reasoning behind the Electoral College and how it works in simple, easy-to-understand terms can help the kids easily grasp the concept.
- Reasoning
- When putting into place the processes by which we would elect our leading officials, our Founding Fathers decided to use an Electoral College as a middle ground between the people and the actual election results for a number of reasons. First, the Electoral College balances the weight each state has in the election by giving each state a say based on the same number of members of Congress they have in both the House and the Senate. Also, they wanted some more responsible people voting for the President and Vice President because they felt the common man was too concerned with his local affairs to be educated about things at the national level.
History
- The delegates of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 debated for a long time about the best way to elect the President of the United States. Some felt it should be the direct responsibility of Congress while others thought it would be best to let the common man make the decision. Some others, however, felt the common man's decision needed to be monitored by those who were more educated about the politics of the country. Finally, in 1804, the 12th amendment to the Constitution was passed and made effective, officially putting the Electoral College into place, which allowed for a monitored version of the common man's decision to be the determining factor of who won the presidency.
How it Works
- Depending on when a person shows up to the polls to vote in his state, he may see the names of the presidential candidates on the ballot. For example, in the 2008 election, he may have chosen either "Barack Obama" or "John McCain" for President; however, the voter doesn't vote for the candidate directly. Instead, he's voting for a representative from his state who is a part of the Electoral College that has committed to voting for the candidate whose name appears on the ballot. After the popular election takes place, the members of the Electoral College get together and cast their votes, deciding who wins the Presidency.
Why it Matters
- Most of the time the candidate who wins the popular vote of the people also wind the Electoral College vote, but that is not always the case. For example, in the 2000 election between George W. Bush and Al Gore, Mr. Gore won the popular vote, earning the majority of the votes of the American people; however, after the Electoral College voted, Mr. Bush was declared the winner.