A state entitled to ten electors would choose
eight of them in its eight congressional districts, and there were
various ways of choosing the other two. In some of the districts one
party would have a majority, in others the other, and so the electoral
vote of the state would be divided between two pairs of candidates.
After 1830 it became customary to choose the electors upon a general
ticket, and thus the electoral vote became solid in each state.[13]
[Footnote 13: In 1860 the vote of New Jersey was divided between Lincoln
and Douglas, but that was because the names of three of
the seven Douglas electors were upon two different tickets, and
thus got a majority of votes while the other four fell short. In
1892 the state of Michigan chose its electors by districts.]
[Sidenote: Minority presidents.]
[Sidenote: Advantages of the electoral system.]
This system, of course, increases the chances of electing presidents who
have received a minority of the popular vote. A candidate may carry one
state by an immense majority and thus gain 6 or 8 electoral votes; he
may come within a few hundred of carrying another state and thus lose 36
electoral votes.
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