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The Dr. John Bedker Leadership PodcastAuthor: John Bedker
The art and craft of leadership is more important in todays turbulent world than ever before. If you want to learn about what makes a great leader and be able to apply leadership skills to enrich your life and those around you, then this podcast is for you. Dr. John Bedker shares a lifetime of real leadership experiences and unpacks the ins and outs of what makes a great leader...and what does not. Gain actionable insights for your own leadership journey and learn from stories of the worlds most effective leaders across all walks of life. Visit our website at: https://drjohnbedkerleadership.com/ Language: en Genres: Business, Education, Management, Self-Improvement Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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The Playbook #4: The Electoral College
Episode 105
Thursday, 29 October, 2026
Playbook 4- The Electoral College Does every person’s vote count? In the United States we stress that every person’s vote counts. In get-out-the-vote (GOTV) rallies this is a central reason to vote. Make “your” voice heard. Your vote not only counts but counts the same as everyone’s. So, get out and vote. This is the mantra in every election season. It is certainly present in our current mid-term election cycle, but do the people really elect their representatives? The answer is yes, but not all the time. Local and state elections are won by the person with the most votes. The person receiving the most votes is your popularly elected local or state representative. The Presidential election is a very different matter. At present, the Electoral College determines who is elected President of the United States, not necessarily who received the most votes. There is a total of 538 electors. They are comprised of the number of senators and representatives from each state plus three electors from the District of Columbia. Article II, Section 1, Clause 2 of the United States Constitution delineates who can and cannot be an elector, sitting Congressmen for example cannot be electors. Electors are generally chosen by state party committees before presidential elections. Let’s look at the pros and cons of the Electoral College. Pro Electoral College- The framers felt that there may be voters that were uninformed, easily manipulated, or just following the herd; voters that may cast their vote for someone unqualified. And so, the framers concluded that it would be better to put this most consequential decision, the election of the President of the United States, in a few knowledgeable hands. Others feared that smaller and less populated states would be adversely affected, receive little attention, and not have the influence in an election that they felt they deserved. The framers were concerned about underrepresentation for smaller states. Con Electoral College- “One person, one vote” does not ring true. Under the Electoral College a person could win the popular vote and lose the Presidential election. This has happened in several elections, most recently in 2016. Candidates would likely focus their time and resources on so called “swing states” because of electoral college voting protocols. The Electoral College does not deliver a level playing field; in fact, it does quite the opposite. Other negative factors, in our more modern world, include overrepresentation of smaller states, a seemingly undemocratic system. Smaller states, each with two Senators and at least one Representative give far greater representation to a small number of people compared with other states with far greater populations. There is an unbalancing of the vote across the country. Simply, many feel, the Electoral College today undermines election legitimacy. It is perceived that the voice of the people is not equal between the various states. With this backdrop, what does history tell us about the impact of the Electoral College on the outcome of Presidential elections? And, what does the data tell us about the support for changing or eliminating this arcane system? The History- In the 2000 Presidential election between Al Gore (D) and George Bush (R), the Florida Supreme Court ordered manual recounts in counties where there were historically statistically undervote numbers. The Bush campaign sued. In a 7-2 decision the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Florida Supreme Court’s decision to recount the votes in the statistically problematic counties. Bush then won the Florida Electoral College votes and the Presidency. Al Gore won the popular vote by almost half a million votes. In the 2016 Presidential election Donald Trump won 304 Electoral College votes to Hillary Clinton’s 227 votes. Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by 2.87 million votes. The peoples voice did not prevail, again. The Electoral College did. Donald Trump became the fifth person to be elected President of the United States without winning the popular vote. The voice of the people must prevail in a democracy. For the voice of 538 electors to prevail over the people flies in the face of a fundamental democratic requirement, free and fair elections. The Electoral College can circumvent the voice of “We the People.” As a consequence, the Electoral College raises a fundamental issue of election legitimacy. The Data- Pew Research data shows most Americans (63%) would like to see the President as the person that received the most votes nationally. This data is skewed by Conservative Republicans (MAGA) that would like to retain the Electoral College system. Electoral College votes in smaller, heavily “red” predominately MAGA states add up for this population, and they do not want it to change. More moderate Republicans across the United States favor abolishing the Electoral college by 61%. Democrats, across the United States, strongly support abolishing the Electoral College (87%), according to Pew Research. Here are two possible pathway solutions to this vexing problem. Optimal Pathway- Constitutional Amendment What can be done? The optimal solution that we routinely mention in these playbooks for transformative leadership change is to amend the Constitution of the United States. While this seems an unlikely successful path, there is history to support this optimal solution, regarding the Electoral College. A significant affirmative vote, two-thirds in both the House and the Senate, and approval of at least 38 of the 50 states would be required to amend the U.S. Constitution. As challenging and unlikely as this path sounds, in 1934 legislation fell just two votes short in the Senate of eliminating the Electoral College. In 1979 another vote in the Senate failed by three votes to eradicate the Electoral College. Over the past 250 years of our nation there have been over 700 attempts to correct or eliminate the Electoral College. So, there is energy and there has been action to advance the publics desire to ensure the publics vote counts and to ensure democracy prevails. Gaming the current Electoral College system is not a solution to a looming genuine constitutional crisis. Transformative leadership change is necessary. Alternative Pathway- National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC) There is an interstate pact known as the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC), which was created to recognize the national popular vote in Presidential elections. The NPVIC commits electors to place their Electoral College votes for the candidate that won the national popular vote. Since 2008, 15 states and the District of Columbia have signed on. This pact is short 74 votes for NPVIC to become effective. NPVIC will only become effective if enough states ratify to reach the Electoral College majority of 270 votes. MAGA and other forces may seek to litigate the actions of NPVIC. Other state electors may choose to defect. Perhaps the most glaring challenge comes from the scenario where a state vote chooses one candidate, and the national vote chooses another. Under NPVIC that state would be required to vote for the candidate that won the national popular vote. How to optimize the prospects for the popular vote to prevail in national Presidential elections- There are several strategies that may be valuable. The following lists a collective and grass roots approach. These several strategies together may be the leadership-based approach to carry the day and maintain a pro-democracy approach going forward. This collective vision begins with publicly funded national and local campaigns, with funding for every state. Funding of down ballet races is critical. Governors’ races would be key. The Governor of a state sets the tone. They are the leader of their state. They were elected by the majority of the people in their state. It is the voice and leadership of a state governor that is at the core of this collective strategy. Hopefully, they also have voices of leadership in the state house and state senate of their respective states. This leadership chain is essential to effecting change. The leadership chain continues to mayors, members of town councils, school boards, judgeships, county commissioners, and other local and municipal representatives to bring an aligned leadership vision to their respective roles. This state leadership and grass roots approach is the transformative leadership change essential to advance democracy, express the true will of the people, and bring legitimacy to every vote counting and every vote counting equally. This playbook brings into specific focus two pathways to ensure the people elect their President. Each is transformative, each is pro-democracy. Both are difficult. The time has come for transformative change. The people must prevail.
