More And More People Are Worrying About The Electoral College Nightmare Scenario

Business Insider ^ | 10/22/2012 | Walter Hickey

[SeekAndFind]

There's been a lot of chatter lately about the plausible scenario that Obama and Romney tie in the electoral college.

The odds aren't that low.

Essentially, here's what would happen.

Provided that there are no faithless electors — people selected for the Electoral College who disregard the popular vote in their state and vote for the opponent — the election would be decided in Congress, when each state delegation votes and allocates one vote to a candidate.

The first one to amass 26 votes wins.

Here's the issue a lot of people are talking about. What if Obama wins the popular vote and the electoral college is tied?

Based on the breakdown of state delegations, and provided there aren't too many unexpected results on November 6 with congressional elections, Mitt Romney would win the vote in the house of Representatives.

David Frum at The Daily Beast raises that question:

"This moves us beyond Bush v. Gore territory into someplace even more contested and more frightening. And whereas 2000 was a low-intensity election involving a Democratic not hugely beloved by his own party base, a House contest in 2012 would unleash every passion in the American political system."

If Obama wins the popular but ties the electoral, would it even be feasible for the House of Representative to appoint the loser of the popular vote to president, politically speaking?

That would make the second Republican elected president in four cycles who lost the popular vote. And with the congressional approval rating at an insulting 10%, would the result be considered legitimate?

[jocon307]

“I think if there is a tie the Obama people will bribe or blackmail one Romney elector into voting for Obama.”

Obama and co. are dirty enough to try this, I’m sure, which Gore and co. would not have done. They really are no better than a bunch of crooks this bunch.

The truly frightening part of your scenario, as with everything about this man, is that the media would never even question it. Rather they’d heap praises on the head of the faithless elector.

However, should the above come to pass (God forbid!) it would not end well as faith in our government and media would be completely destroyed for better than 1/2 the populace. I say better than half because there appears to be no doubt Romney will win Independents commandingly.

[Jim Noble]

This moves us beyond Bush v. Gore territory into someplace even more contested and more frightening

This is just pathetic.

First of all, the situation in 2000 was not a crisis and was not frightening. The creators of the system anticipated non-decisive Presidential elections (they thought it would be common) and designed a mechanism to deal with that. If the Supreme Court had stayed out of it in 2000, Bush would have been elected President in any legal and constitutional scenario (there were several).

As far as 2012 resulting in a no candidate majority situation: BFD. Again, the Constitutional mechanism for designating a President is more than adequate to deal with it.

[Verginius Rufus]

The Gore people had a lot of dirtry tricks in 2000, including making a specail effort to disallow votes from soldiers stationed overseas—particularly in Florida where it could help them overcome Bush’s lead in the popular vote. There was talk of trying to flip some of the Bush electors because the plurality in the electoral college was so small, but it may have been from people not officially connected to the Gore campaign.