As we approach another end to an election, I’m reaching out with a deep sense of urgency and hope.
Your vote is an expression of your voice, your values, and your belief in the possibility of a fair democracy.
But to be fully empowered, we need to understand a system that continues to distort the power of that voice: the Electoral College.
This system wasn’t born of some high-minded vision of democracy. It was a compromise, a decision made in 1787 to address competing interests—some practical, some morally questionable.
Southern states, with their enslaved populations, wanted greater influence, even though enslaved people couldn’t vote.
The result?
The infamous Three-Fifths Compromise, which allowed enslaved people to be partially counted toward representation, thereby boosting Southern power in Congress and the Electoral College.
This was not a pure or principled choice—it was about preserving influence for those already in power.
Our Electoral College was designed more out of political calculation than democratic idealism.
It was an arrangement that let elites maintain control, fearing that ordinary citizens might not be “fit” to directly choose their leader.
And this system, which never truly reflected equal representation, has led to a number of presidents taking office without winning the popular vote.
This isn’t just an accident of history; it’s a byproduct of a structure designed to prioritize the power of certain voices over others.
For over two centuries, attempts have been made to abolish or reform the Electoral College.
One of the most passionate champions of this cause was Senator Birch Bayh, who believed that every vote should be equal, that the presidency should belong to the people—not the states, not political insiders, but the people.
His proposed amendment in 1969 sought to establish a direct popular vote for the presidency, coming closer than ever before to reshaping our system into one that would truly honor the voice of each American.
Yet, like so many attempts, it fell short, and the legacy of the Electoral College continues.
Think about this: in nearly every state, the winner takes all the electoral votes, erasing the voices of the voters who chose differently.
And in swing states—just a handful of them—the outcome of an entire election is often decided.
This leaves millions of us feeling that our votes don’t matter as much, that our voices are ignored. It’s no wonder voter disillusionment is so high.
The Electoral College is not a requirement of democracy. It’s a compromise that does not belong in a system that values each voice equally.
We don’t have to accept it as a given.
We can envision—and work for—a future in which each vote carries the same weight, regardless of where we live.
Imagine a democracy that respects every choice equally, where we don’t need intermediaries to translate our will.
This isn’t about partisanship.
It’s about fairness, about restoring faith in a system that can truly belong to each of us.
I hope that as you cast your vote this year, you’ll remember the power we have to change what doesn’t serve us.
And when the time comes to ask for a democracy that reflects us all equally, we’ll know exactly what we’re fighting for.
With belief in the strength of every voice,
A Fellow Advocate for True Democracy