The Electoral College: The Truth Behind Trump's Presidency
The 2016 US Presidential Election remains controversial, with much debate surrounding whether Donald Trump truly won the presidency. A key point of contention is the role played by the Electoral College, a system often criticized for being outdated and potentially biased.
The Comey Letter and its Impact
The Comey letter released in October 2016 dramatically affected Hillary Clinton's campaign. This letter came before tens of millions of people had voted early and led to her campaign facing numerous questions about her handling of confidential emails. James Comey, the FBI director who sent the letter, concluded that while Clinton had been careless, she was innocent. However, this revelation significantly harmed Clinton's reputation and polling numbers.
Additionally, Clinton's margin of victory in the popular vote was substantial: she received approximately 2.8 million more votes than Trump, or 2 percent of the total population. Despite this, she lost the election due to the winner-take-all nature of the Electoral College, where the votes of the majority in certain states determined the outcome.
The Electoral College and Its Bias
The system of the Electoral College often advantages Republican candidates, as seen during the 2016 election. This is particularly evident in the context of the recent news of purging votes. According to some reports, Republican governors and officials used a 'semi-legal' strategy to purge Democratic votes while allowing similar Republican errors to go unchallenged. This practice, known as purging votes, selectively eliminated Democratic votes based on minor or insignificant errors, while failing to apply the same standards to Republican votes.
Despite this seemingly questionable practice, such actions are often difficult to challenge in court as they may not be considered illegal but are certainly unethical. Thus, purging votes remains a contentious issue in the context of the 2016 election and the seemingly flawed outcome of the Electoral College.
Conclusion: An Outdated System
While Donald Trump technically won the presidency, the result was not reflective of the popular vote. The Electoral College, designed in a pre-modern era, continues to skew the democratic process in favor of particular parties. The absence of a direct popular vote system leaves many questioning the true meaning of a 'democracy' in the modern context, as exemplified by Jimmy Carter's comment that we do not live in a true democracy.
In summary, while there is no denying that Donald Trump was declared the winner, his victory was largely due to an outdated legal system that was not designed for our modern era. The debate over the fairness of the Electoral College continues, raising important questions about the nature of democracy in the United States.