Carnie letter: Electoral College
On Jan. 2, and subsequently, this paper published a positive article on Idaho ballot’s “integrity.” How many Idahoans know of Rob Beck, Caleb Lakey, Jennifer Locke, or C.A. (“Skip”) Smyser? None of those names appeared on the recent ballot. Yet, on Dec. 19, those four individuals cast all four electoral college votes allotted to Idaho in selection of the coming president. Who are they? What are their political positions? Now identified as “(R),” (R) is hardly definitive given current disarray within that party. Idaho voters had no choice for approval/disapproval in the presidential election. Persons not even named on the ballot cast our votes.
How were these four selected? One-party appointees (winner takes all). The Electoral College system under which they cast our votes was developed to appease the South because its slavery-based population contained too few whites. Slavery went out a century and a half ago. It is long past time for the Electoral College to go as well. Its retention is a usurpation of the role of individual voter. Look at the country’s popular vote. We must return to all Idaho citizens “one man, one vote.” Idaho ballot “integrity”? Hardly.
Kent Carnie, Boise
This story was originally published January 25, 2017 at 4:10 PM with the headline "Carnie letter: Electoral College."