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Letter: Electoral College gives all states a voice

Friday, June 2, 2006 | 7:19 a.m.

Again, an argument about the fairness of the Electoral College. A continuation of an argument beginning before the constitutional establishment of the Electoral College, there is nothing new in today's presentations. The discussion entails the fairness of deciding the presidency on the basis of popular vote or distribution of that vote.

Using the popular vote as the standard, presidential elections could be decided by the residents of a few populous states, whereas decision by distribution requires attention to a wider distribution of states. To be logical, if one desires decision by popular vote only, then the U.S. Senate composition should also be changed from the current two senators per state.

The Electoral College has on several occasions put into office the candidate with the lesser popular vote but - and this is a big but - that candidate's votes were more widely distributed across the nation. Meaning that other people had a say than just those concentrated in the larger states. Nevada matters, but in election by total popular vote, Nevada is outvoted! Before considering a change, the history of the Electoral College within our federal republic should be reviewed.

William F. Brennan, Las Vegas

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