The process of electing a U.S president takes two stages. In the first stage, the eligible citizens are required to cast their vote, which is termed the popular vote. The second stage is having the electors in the Electoral College cast their votes. For a candidate to be declared the president-elect, he or she must have attained the majority of the votes in the Electoral College. For many years, the Electoral College was not viewed as a problem because the outcomes often aligned with the popular votes. However, the 2000 and 2016 elections had different outcomes in the popular vote and Electoral College, causing people to start pushing for change (Lewis-Beck et al. 652). Although Electoral College served a vital role in the past, changes should be made to ensure that the power vote becomes the most influential decision in the election of a president.

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          The history of the Electoral College process dates back to the foundation of the U.S. After gaining independence from Great Britain, the constitution-making process kicked in to look at the best form of governance that would unify the country and uphold the interest of every American. The presidential election was one of the major issues that attracted heated debates during the first constitutional convention meeting in Philadelphia in 1787 (Phillips et al. 411). The first group wanted a president that would only be elected directly by Congress, while the second group wanted the citizens to have the direct power to elect the president. In this regard, the introduction of the Electoral College was embraced as a compromise because it incorporated the interest of the two conflicting parties.

          The introduction of the Electoral College meant that both the public and Congress did not have absolute power to determine the president of the U.S. This middle ground served a critical role in promoting unity and bringing all the states together, to embrace the U.S first constitution that replaced the Article of Confederation. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and his team supported the establishment of a strong government with three branches, executive, legislative, and judiciary, arguing that it would be the best strategy for protecting the rights of the citizens. The anti-federalist led by Patrick Henry and Richard Henry Lee argued that a central government would suppress and take the independence of individual states (Phillips et al. 417). Both pro-Federalists and anti-Federalists agreed with the Electoral College system because it meant that every stated and every citizen had a role in determining the president of the union...............