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64 Pol. Sci. Q. 1 (1949)

handle is hein.journals/pclscceqry64 and id is 1 raw text is: Volume LXIV POLITICAL SCIENCE QUARTERLY REFORM OF THE ELECTORAL SYSTEM Introduction T is my purpose in this article to examine those features of our electoral system which have been singled out for re- form in the amendment to the Constitution recently pro- posed by Senator Lodge and now under public debate.' I must begin, however, by pointing out and commenting upon two things which the Lodge amendment does not do, but in respect of which there has been much popular misconception., In the first place the Lodge amendment does not provide for a direct election of the President of the United States by the people at large. The intermediate electors are abolished, but the electoral vote is retained. This means that it would still be possible for a candidate receiving a minority of the popular vote to receive a majority of the electoral vote. Take two states each having 24 electoral votes, and assume that 4 million popular votes are cast in one, 2.4 millions in the other. In state A the Republican receives 3/4 of the popular vote, the Democrat '4; in state B ithe Republican receives Y/, the Democrat 7/s. The popular vote in the two states together is 3.3 millions for the Republican, 3.1 millions for the Democrat. But under the Lodge amendment-which provides for prorating the electoral votes of each state between the candidates in proportion to their popular votes therein-the Democrat is credited with 27 elec- toral votes to the Republican's 21. The proportional voting 1 81st Cong., 1st. Sess., S. J. Res. 2 (January 5, 1949). (1) March 1949 Number 1