Wrong Winner: The Coming Debacle in the Electoral College

This book describes what the authors identify as an emerging political crisis in U.S. politics: the possible winning of the presidency by a candidate with far fewer votes than his or her opponent. David W. Abbott and James P. Levine stress both the irrationality and peculiar nature of the current electoral system, emphasizing recent and current political developments. On the basis of their computer analysis of past elections and modern political realities, the authors predict that within twenty years it is very likely that the United States will produce a "wrong winner." In explaining how this phenomenon could occur, Abbott and Levine introduce the concept of the "wasted vote;" the fact that winning lopsided majorities in states is worth no more than winning states by one vote, due to the antiquated winner-take-all principle. The opening chapter gives a brief historical overview of the electoral college and the structure of the existing electoral system. The method of selection of state electors is then scrutinized, along with the set of procedures that the electors work with until the formal announcement of the electoral votes. The authors also note that, under an odd set of ground rules, if no candidate gets a majority of votes in the college, the House of Representatives must choose the president. Whenever there is a third party candidate, there is a danger of a stalemate in Congress, creating the potential for "all kinds of nefarious political shenanigans." The authors conclude that the only satisfactory solution to the electoral system's shortcomings is the total abrogation of the electoral college and a shift to direct election of the president by the people. Wrong Winner will be an excellent supplementary text in Public Choice, Campaign and Elections, and American Government courses, as well as of interest to political professionals and political scientists.David W. Abbott is the author of 'Wrong Winner: The Coming Debacle in the Electoral College', published 1991 under ISBN 9780275938710 and ISBN 0275938719.