Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1916-12-14
FUNCTIONS OF
THE ELECTORS
States We're to Have Voice In
Choosing President.
HAS some DISADVANTAGES,
System In Some Instances Gives Small
States Greater Proportionate Repre-
sentation In Electoral College Than
Larger States Have-Founders Sought
Only Men of High Standing.

Only Men of High Standing.
The electoral college. the reason for
its existence and its functions have
been the subject of considerable dis
cusSion during the election just held.
y great many questions have been
asked concerning this institution. and
these are answered by the New York
sun as follows:
The idea cf the founders of the re-
public WAS to have picked men. re-
@ard!cSs CT political party. choose the
president. Accordingly they provided
in the constitution that each, state
should appoint presidential electors lin
such names as its legislature NAV
direct"
1t was the design Of the trainers Of
our constitution to give the states, as
such, Il voice i'll the choice of the pres
idcnt. Accordingly they provided in
article II, section =, that
Each state shall appoint a
number of electors equal to the whole
number of senator's and representa-
tA'A' "" N lIC HltliN lltS bt Sult-
tied in the congress-"
This gave to the smaller statcf a rep
rescntation among the electors greater
than would have been theirs had pop
ulation alone been consulted. 1t is fol
lowed today by allotting to each state
as many electors as it has senators
and representatives combined. Thus
New York has two senators and forty
three representatives. ana therefore
torty-tive presidential electors. Rhode
Island has w senator's, three con-
"resSmcu and five presidential electors.
Yet the population Of Now York is not
nine, but eighteen times that Of Rhode
Island. The two additional electors
are the states voice in the choice Of
q president, as distinguished from the
voice Of the people, though the utter
ance may le the same,
The First Election.
In the first election Of a president In
1850 there were attempts to hold pop
ular elections in New Hampshire. Mas
sachuSetts. Pennsylvania, Maryland
and Virginia, but the choice Of electors
was finally made by the legislatures OF
these states. Rhode Island and North
Carolina had not yet ratified the con-
stitution. in New York the legislature
| quarrelcd too long about the question
of ratification, SO that these three
states failed that year to choose presi-
dental electors.
Every one had Washington in mind
for the presidency, but lie was not
nominated in the modern sense at all.
When the electors assembled each cleo
tor cast two votes. net distinguishing
Il as for president and the other as
for vice president. There were sixty
nine electors, and each cast one vote
for Washington. OF the other sixty
nine votes John Adams had thirty
four, John Jay had nine and the rest
were scattered. Washington was ac-
cordin"ly declared president and John
ADAMS vice president.
In 1856 there were for the first time
two distinctly declared and opposing
candidates for the neutrality-suspicious.
and jefferson. Adams received II
votes and jefferson Ge. Thus Jeffer-
son became vice president. Pennsyl-
vania, Maryland, Virginia and North
Carolina cast divided electoral votes.
Even in Jetfcrson's home state there
was an electoral vote for Adams. al
though Virginia was strongly Jetfer-
sonian. The fine theory of the fathers
that the electors could and should act
independently of popular preference
did not survive this political strain.
Electors Are Tied.
In 1901 a fresh difficulty arose.
Jefferson and Burr each received sew
enty-threc votes Of the electors and
were tied for the presidency. Now
FUR had not been seriously thought
Of for the presidency. The votes cast
for him had been intended to insure
him second place. The contest had
been regarded solely as between JEFF
lerson and Adams. But Burr had per-
mirted the use of his name as a candi-
date against Jefferson.
This muddle, ultimately resolved in
i'''l vi W II AOlSS "
representatives, ended the business Of
having the electors vote only for pres
ident, with the vice presidency falling
to the nan whose vote stood second.
Thereafter votes were cast distinctly
for president and for vice president,
as is lone today.
The electors Of the present will be
seen to be entirely different persons
from those the founders of this coun-
try had i'll mind. The electors are
now as completely responsive to the
popular will as is possible without the
entire removal of state boundaries in
presidential elections. Were these
boundaries to be diSregarded there
would be no further use for presiden-
tial electors, and the popular vote
would decide the issue.
And that is what the nation will
have when by the process of constitu-
tional amendment the element of state
hood is eliminated and the people vote
directly for president, Then the presi-
don't will nlwnys ro,rocnpt n , inr;tx,