The electoral college in the United States is a mechanism adopted by the constitution for the indirect election of the president and vice president. Citizens of each state and District of Columbia vote for electors, who total an equal number of senators and representatives (538), in general elections, who then vote in return for the candidate of a particular party, whether This is the Republican or Democratic candidate. Each voter is allowed only one vote for president and one vote for vice president. The candidate who received the most votes in the Electoral College elections held on the third Monday in December. The vote is then certified by Congress in early January, and the term of the newly elected president and vice president begins on January 20 at noon. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayThe Electoral College was originally created to help preserve a representative form of government. The system has some advantages or benefits for voters. For example, it seems to strengthen the status of minority interests (Cebula, p. 56). In the United States, ethnic minority groups tend to concentrate in minority states that receive the greatest number of electoral votes, and their interests are therefore not diminished by a decline in voter turnout. The Electoral College is supposed to save the interests of citizens living in less busy areas. Another benefit of the Electoral College is the fact that it facilitates a two-party system in the nation, which creates more stability (Edwards III). It also gives more power to the states by allowing them to choose delegates, which helps maintain a representative form of government. The electoral college voting system is marred by three major flaws. First, there is the risk that the winner of the popular vote may not win the presidency, for example in the last election in 2016, where Hillary Clinton won the popular vote, but Donald Trump won the electoral college vote (Colomer, etc., p. 32). The second flaw is that the Constitution does not require electors to vote for the candidate who wins the popular vote in their state. However, it is obligatory but not expected. Another flaw is that if none of the candidates wins any of the votes, popular or electoral, the elections should be decided in the House of Representatives. This then means that each state is only allowed one vote and less populated states would be equal to more populated states. If a state representative is undecided, then the state loses its vote. Faithless electors are members of the electoral college who do not vote for the presidential candidate for whom they had pledged to vote. They either end up voting for a different candidate or they don't vote at all. In some states like Colorado, Minnesota, and Michigan, electors are required to vote according to the state's popular vote or for the candidate they signed up for (National Archives article). Otherwise, they are disqualified and replaced. However, they have never changed the outcome of an electoral process, but are there to make a statement. The popular vote has more potential if the Electoral College can be abolished. The Electoral College violates the intent of its founders and that is why the popular vote, which advocates democracy, should replace it. The popular vote allows each citizen with the right to vote to make their voice heard and not cede their power to a few elected officials who may not even share their choice of candidate. The Electoral College interferes with the democratic method of decision-making to the extent,.