Changing the way we elect the President is an important topic that deserves careful scrutiny. This page summarizes the concerns that have been raised during the course of the debate on the National Popular Vote bill, and shows how they are myths. The myths are grouped into categories that can be browsed by following the links below. This material is from Chapter 9 of Every Vote Equal, which can be downloaded by clicking on the button:
- 9.1 Myths about the Constitution
- 9.2 Myths That Presidential Candidates Reach Out to All the States under the Current System
- 9.3 Myths about Small States
- 9.4 Myths about Big States
- 9.5 Myths about Big Counties
- 9.6 Myths about Big Cities
- 9.7 Myths about Big Metropolitan Areas
- 9.8 Myths about Rural States and Rural Voters
- 9.9 Myths about Absolute Majorities and Run-Offs
- 9.10 Myths about the Proliferation of Candidates and a Breakdown of the Two-Party System
- 9.11 Myths about Extremist and Regional Candidates
- 9.12 Myths about Mob Rule, Demagogues, and Tyranny of the Majority
- 9.13 Myths about Campaigns
- 9.14 Myths about Faithless Presidential Electors
- 9.15 Myths about Presidential Power and Mandate
- 9.16 Myth that the Electoral College Produces Good Presidents.
- 9.17 Myths about Non-Citizen Voting
- 9.18 Myth about Voting by 17-Year-Olds
- 9.19 Myths about the Operation of the Compact
- 9.20 Myth about Replacing Dead, Disabled, or Discredited Presidential Candidates
- 9.21 Myths about Fraud
- 9.22 Myth that National Popular Vote Is Unpopular
- 9.23 Myths about Congressional Consent
- 9.24 Myths about the District of Columbia
- 9.25 Myth about Withdrawing from the Compact between Election Day and the Electoral College Meeting
- 9.26 Myth that Candidates Will Be Kept off the Ballot
- 9.27 Myths about Ranked Choice Voting
- 9.28 Myths about STAR, Range, and Approval Voting
- 9.29 Myths about Election Administration
- 9.30 Myths about Vote Counting
- 9.31 Myth that the Compact Could Be Thwarted by a Single State Official or State
- 9.32 Myths about Adjudication of Election Disputes
- 9.33 Myths about Adjudication of the Constitutionality of the Compact
- 9.34 Myths about Recounts
- 9.35 Myths about Durability of the Compact
- 9.36 Myths about a Systematic Republican or Democratic Advantage in the Electoral College
- 9.37 Myth about State Identity
- 9.38 Myth about Hamilton Favoring the Current System
- 9.39 Myth about States Gaming the Compact
- 9.40 Myths about Slavery
- 9.41 Myths about the Voting Rights Act
- 9.42 Myth about the World Series
- 9.43 Myth about Origins and Funding of the National Popular Vote Campaign
- 9.44 Myths about Proposals that Are Enacted by a Single State or Only a Few States
- 9.45 Myth about Unintended Consequences