The Evening critic., 1884-12-05
The Electoral College.

The New York Times arrays itself in line
with thoughtful journals in denouncing tho
absurdities of the Electoral College as it ex-
is un der the present system. Tho follow
ing expression of It's views is worth y care
ful reading:
The Electoral College of the State of Now
York, having received blessing and erected
an organization on Tuesday, yesterday settled
down to real work and cast thirty-six votes
each for Cleveland and Hendricks. This act
was contrary to the original provision OF the
Constitution, which intended that the person
having the second greatest number OF votes
for President should be Vice President. In
the present case the unrevlsed wisdom OF our
ancestors would have given us Cleveland and
From this danger we wero saved by the
twelfth amendment, which was ratified In
become plainly unworkable and tho natural
device OF O national "tlcket' been employed
10 supersede tho plan contemplated by the
Constitution, which was that the Electoral
College should be O deliberatve body and
really choose the President instead of regis
terlng tho choice of the voters 1t does not
now do even that, for the election is complete
before the so.called electors have anything
whatever 10 do with It, the State canvassers
doing the work OF registration.
1t Is O serious public misfortune that the
amendment OF 1903 should not have gone fur
ther than the remedy OF the Inconvenience
then Immediately felt. As soon as the voters
began TO vote for O National ticket, and to eS.
press, instead OF delegating, their choice OF q
President and Vice-President, the Electoral
| college became an appendago to the election
which was plainly neither useful nor orna-
| mental. No piece OF humbug which is intruded
| into so important matter as the election OF q
| President Is simply supernuous. 1t is liable
| 10 become mischlevous.
| II, for example, in close election the elect
| ors OF q State could be bribed 10 betray tho
voters and TO cast their own votes for the candi-
OF ns pa az woaa her ps
| from being counted for the candidate against
| whom they wero chosen TO vote or OF punish.
Ing them for betraylrg their constituents.
They would simply be exercising O. discretion
which tho Constitution commits TO them. II
cannot be said that this Is contingency which
can never arise, or that among the four hun.
dred members OF tho Electoral College three
or four can never be tempted to commit an un.
punishable crime.
We need not resort to imaginary cases in
order TO ascertain that the Electoral College Is
mischievous as well as useless. In 1876 q
Federal officeholder was permitted TO cast one
express provision Of tho Constitution, that the
will OF the people OF that State might not be
defeated. Nay, at Albany yesterday the 'rol
lego" was Kept waiting for half an hour for ar
tho college was to assemble, and who was en-
powered TO cast one.thirty.sixth OF the votes o
New York. Another elector, 1t is related, In
ndyertentiy voted for Governor Cleveland FOL
| Yice-President, and II this inadvertency haf
not been noted by another elector, It woult
Whatever elso is done In relation to tho elec
tion OF president,it 1t is plain that the clumsy
intervention OF the @Electors" between til;
voters and the accomplishment OF their vii
should bo removed by an amendment 10 TIL
Constitution.
Before resorting to Constitutions
! amendment, cannot the method of choosin
the members Of tho Electoral College be q
, altered that tho vii ~ the people can b
accomplished? p I9M recent article Tn
: CRITIC Acknowledgment a change. 1t pointc
]. out the advantages to be gained by permit
!. ting each Congressional district to vote f
. Presidential Elector, the two extra
]. each State going to the party polling pl
Z rality of the votes cast. Thus the minori
,, would be represented in the College, as it
., not now represented
To secure Constitutional amendment
a long and difficult undertaking. Such
change as THE CRITIC suggests could
adopted by the vote of any State Legisl
ture that approved 1t. That it should
adopted in New York State can hardly
doubted.