Click Here For The Electoral College and the U.S. Presidential Elections -- Revisited

The Electoral College and the U.S. Presidential Elections � Revisited: "The Founders chose an Electoral College for the election of our chief executives -- i.e., President and Vice President --� because of their vast knowledge of history, philosophy and unchanging human nature. They knew from ancient history that destructive passions could be aroused by self-serving demagogues at moments of social unrest and economic crises, leading to political violence and the overthrow of legitimate authorities.(1) The door is thus opened for the advent of anarchy, followed by despotic rule, as 'order' is restored at the expense of individual liberty.

The stabilizing and constitutional functions of the Electoral College remain as important today as they were intended to be by the framers at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787 and through subsequent chapters of American history.

In 1800, when neither Thomas Jefferson nor Aaron Burr received a majority of votes cast by the Electoral College, the U.S. House of Representatives, as the Constitution demanded, elected Jefferson by one vote, ending the impasse. Both Jefferson and Burr were running on the Democratic-Republican ticket, defeating soundly their Federalist opponents. "