Democratic Vice Presidential candidate Tim Walz, the governor of Minnesota, made a strong case Tuesday against the elimination of the Electoral College at a campaign fundraiser in California, according to a pool report. Walz addressed his remarks in California Governor Gavin Newsom’s private residence in Sacramento and said he would continue to support a national popular vote, even though he recognized that there is an actual Electoral College in American politics today.
“I think all of us know the Electoral College needs to go. We need, we need national popular vote, but that’s not the world we live in,” Walz said to a group of supporters. He emphasized the importance of focusing on battleground states such as Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Nevada in the campaign’s effort to secure the necessary 270 electoral votes.
While Walz was quite explicit in his individual position, one Harris campaign staffer made clear this isn’t an official campaign position. “Governor Walz believes that every vote matters in the Electoral College, and he is honored to be traveling the country and battleground states working to earn support for the Harris-Walz ticket.”
Contextual Proposals to Dismantle the Electoral College: Past Attempts
Walz’s line in the Democratic Party isn’t anything revolutionary. Vice President Kamala Harris is known for being open about abolishing the Electoral College. In a 2019 interview with “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” Harris, who was running for president at the time, says she is “open to the discussion” on having it removed due to how the popular vote has been devalued in the decision of the president.
This attitude is the logical progression of tumultuous US elections. In 5 presidential elections, including 2016 race in which Donald Trump won against Hillary Clinton, the president won not only by popular vote, but also by the Electoral College. It’s a system first established by the Constitution, and it has been in some dispute. Those who are against it argue it has its roots in White supremacy; while others see it as a vital protective mechanism of federalism of American elections.
Target Battleground States:
And yet Walz reiterated the campaign’s interest in the central battlegrounds, and he also conceded that Electoral College wins still matter in our current system. He pointed out the Beaver County, Pennsylvania, York, Pennsylvania, Western Wisconsin, and Reno, Nevada, all of which are crucial to winning the Electoral College that the Harris-Walz ticket needs.
Walz’s remarks capped a full fundraising itinerary on Tuesday, including stops in Seattle and Reno, and a campaign rally after the nightly fundraiser.
Rising Advocates for Electoral Change.
A campaign for the end of the Electoral College became more vocal after the 2020 election when the U.S. had been wrestling with racial and economic issues. For many reformers, the system disenfranchises non-swing voters, and gives special attention to a few battlefields. But repealing or altering the Electoral College would be a constitutional amendment, and that process is both protracted and politically fraught: it needs two-thirds of Congress and three-fourths of state legislatures to approve.
Even as the 2024 presidential election draws closer, elections reform remains an urgent matter in American politics. The question of whether or not the Electoral College reform movement will expand is anybody’s guess, but we can bet that the debate isn’t over.
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