By Steve Brawner
© 2020 by Steve Brawner Communications, Inc.

There’s a saying: Don’t make the perfect the enemy of the good. Here’s a new one: Don’t make the good the enemy of the better. The Electoral College definitely could be better.

The Electoral College has served us reasonably well for two-and-a-half centuries, but its flaws are being exposed. Thanks largely to its winner-take-all system, the loser of the popular vote has won two of the past five elections. The country’s deepening red-blue division means only a few swing states are in play, allowing candidates to ignore the rest – including Arkansas. Unless you live in one of those swing states, your vote really doesn’t affect the outcome.

This election, like recent ones, will be decided in those swing states, including Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin. If 39,000 voters in those three states had voted for Hillary Clinton instead of President Trump, an entirely different set of people on my Facebook feed would be mad all the time. Clinton lost despite having 2.9 million more votes nationwide. Meanwhile, the 2000 election was decided by 537 votes in Florida.

So guess where the candidates will be focusing their attention? Not blood red Arkansas. The Democratic candidate will ignore us, and Trump can take us for granted.

Supporters of the Electoral College say it helps small states like Arkansas, but that’s not necessarily true. Because of its winner-take-all system, it potentially gives outsized influence to big states. A candidate can win the 270 needed Electoral College votes by winning the 12 biggest states by one vote each and not even be on the ballot in the other 38.

People’s views on the Electoral College depend on many factors, but it’s no coincidence that its defenders these days seem more often to be Republicans while its critics tend to be Democrats.

That situation could reverse itself in the future, however. Three of the biggest states with a combined 104 electors – California, New York and Illinois – are guaranteed Democratic wins. Florida with 29 electors is a swing state (and has recently seen an influx of Puerto Rican hurricane refugees while giving ex-felons the right to vote). Texas with 38 electors (and counting) will be a swing state soon if it’s not already. A Democrat who can win Texas and Florida could have 188 electoral votes from those five states alone. Good luck to the Republican candidate in that race.

There are reasons not to decide elections only on the popular vote, including the prospect of a nationwide recount in a close election. What a mess that could be.

So instead of abolishing the Electoral College, we could reform it by increasing the number of electors by a factor of 10, and then awarding them proportionally, with the state’s winner receiving bonus votes.

Arkansas would have 60 electors instead of six. Fifty would be awarded proportionally, with candidates required to receive 2% of the vote to win an elector. The candidate with the most votes would receive an additional 10 electors, plus whatever votes remain because of rounding issues.

Under the current system, Trump in 2016 won all six of Arkansas’ electors. Under this proportional system, he would have won 30, Clinton would have won 17, and Libertarian Gary Johnson would have won one. Then Trump would have received the other 12, for a total of 42.

Meanwhile, Trump also would have won electors in California, New York and Illinois. In 2016, all of those went to Clinton.

That system would benefit all voters. Candidates in every election would need to campaign in all 50 states. If you’re a Democrat or other in Arkansas, your vote would count for something. Same if you’re a Republican in California.

In this system, the winner of the popular vote would be much more likely to win the election, which means Clinton probably would have won in 2016. If you support Trump and your only concern is that one election, that would be a problem.

But the democratic process is more important than any one election. Republicans, remember that the system that benefitted you in 2000 and 2016 could stand in your way in future elections – particularly if Florida turns a little bluer and Texas turns purple.

So let’s make that system better for everyone. Let’s make every state competitive every election, and make every vote count.