“Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote.” ~Benjamin Franklin, the only person to have signed all four of the documents that helped to create our United States: the Declaration of Independence (1776); the Treaty of Alliance with France (1778); the Treaty of Peace between England, France, and the United States (1782); and our Constitution (1787). He helped write parts of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. He was the founder of the University of Pennsylvania, the American Philosophical Society, the Pennsylvania Hospital, and the Franklin and Marshall College.

Thanks to public education, most people today believe that America is a “democracy.” But we’re not a democracy. We’re not “mob-ruled” as much as the puppet masters would like us to be. Our country was founded to be ruled by law, through representatives, which makes us a Constitutional Republic.

This form of representation is not only manifested in the way our government is structured, but also in the way that we elect our presidents. The delegate process and the Electoral College are both forms of representation for We The Voters.

When we go to the polls to vote in the general election, we chose a candidate; however, we’re not actually voting for that candidate. We’re voting for the elector that represents that candidate. Different states have different processes for choosing electors, but they are chosen at the respective party state conventions.

The number of electors is based on the number of representatives in each state. Every state has two senators, plus the number of representatives in The House of Representatives. The number of representatives a state has is based on how many people live in each state—with a guarantee of at least one. (Seven states have only one; California has the most, 53; third is Texas, 36; then Florida and New York each have 27; and so on.) Add the 2 senators, and you get the number of electors. The U.S. has a total of 538 electors.

The Electoral College is important from a state’s rights standpoint. It allows the states to choose the next president instead of a few populous cities. We are United States; each state is represented in our federal government, not each citizen individually.

The founders knew what they were doing when they had this system incorporated into the voting process. It provides a check and balance to the “mob.” It protects the minority.

There is now a propaganda campaign calling for the eradication of the Electoral College. Don’t fall for it. Adjust it, yes; but do not eliminate it. Have a look at the many, easy resources to learn why our Founding Fathers set up our Electoral College.

Here’s a great video explaining how our electoral college works. 5 minutes:

Here’s another great overview explaining not just how it was designed, but why.
5 minute video:

Here’s a good place to start reading about it. It has a few short videos, too:
http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/index.html