Lets get rid of primary elections when electing our president

[RoadRunner79]

Thanks for the thoughtful reply.  I obviously disagree, and the problem you described with the view of your mother, seems to be more concerned with a simple majority system, than an electoral college.   The issue is, that you would have that same problem, but on a country wide level.  I see the EC as a compromise.  I don't think that you would see a EC issue, if there was a 10 point or larger gap, and likely much smaller as we've had recently.

If there was a 10 point or larger gap in polling?  What are you referring to?

In any case, I think we may have a fundamentally different view of what the office of the president is meant to reflect.  To me, the president is not only the face we give to the world and not only the commander in chief, but is also the thought-leader of the country, the one meant to represent The People as whole as opposed to senators who reflect their states, or congresspeople who represent their districts (or at least should be representative of their districts).

Don't forget, either, that we have a whole other branch of the government that is meant to represent people all over the country at a more granular scale.  The president isn't the sole advocate of the people.

If the majority of the country is moving toward LGBT equality then we should have a president that will fight to take us there.  If the majority wants a blanket ban on abortion access then the president should push for that.  If the people agree that climate change is a major issue facing us in the future, we should have a president who will work toward ways to combat it.  Instead, what we've been getting with the electoral college system twice in the last five elections, is a president that the majority of the people didn't vote for who hold views the majority of people don't share, and in the case of our current president, is only interested in doing things to please the most extreme subsection of his own party.

Every other office that we elect is elected by popular vote.  Why not the office that represents The People?

What I meant by a 10 point or larger gap, is 10% (rather than 2.1% or 0.5%. And I agree that the President is suppose to represent the majority of the country, and I have said, not just a majority of the voters (Note: the correct term would actually be a "plurality" here, neither had a majority). And in 230 years it has come into play 5 times.

The main objection seems to be that the EC is not democratic, but we are a republic not a democracy. And this is a part of that set up in the constitution. In addition, if you look for those explaining and supporting the electoral college, there are a number of other reasons. They endorse the two party system, and largely credit it to the EC. Where instead of having numerous parties with narrow political focus, it forces candidates to appeal to a broader consensus of voters. This made me re-think having more parties and choices. It keeps things more towards the middle (at least in theory). That it prevents run-off elections, and for the most part voter re-counts in close races. It's not designed to promote any particular party, nor to favor any particular position.

What you seem to be describing is a pure democracy, which has a number of problems. Do we change the laws, every time the mob has a swing in opinion? We take a vote for each issue? We could get rid of all the branches, and let everyone decide? Perhaps the majority in the cities don't think that farms are that important, or that we can ignore the rust belt and industry. Do you think the nation will be prosperous if we neglect them? A candidate could win with more votes, but far less states and regions. The Presidents job is to be the executive head of the country. He doesn't create laws (which you have representatives for) and he needs to run the country in a way that represents all of it, not just a plurality of people, but all regions and ways of life.

One common thing I kept reading in looking online, is a suggestion, that perhaps instead of trying to circumvent the constitution, perhaps rather than complaining, the democrats should be looking to appeal to more of the country.