he Best Way for Bernie to Win: An Electoral College Agreement
A bit off the wall, but worth thinking about IMO.
http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/32168-focus-the-best-way-for-bernie-to-win-an-electoral-college-agreement
In a parliament, two or more parties can join the votes of their representatives to elect a leader. That’s what they do in Canada.
We can take a similar path here if Bernie Sanders will consider a “safe-state strategy.”
Did you know that in 48 states, a candidate can choose electors based on a pledge to vote for the opposing candidate, if the opposing candidate is in a better position than she or he is to win the Electoral College?
Why hasn’t this strategy been adopted in the past by third party candidates? Good question. I would suggest that the major factor is that only now – thanks to people like Nate Silver – do we have accurate polls that reasonable people can rely on. Nate Silver correctly chose the presidential election winner in every state in the Union in 2012.
Look at the situation. In the USA, we choose our leader with an electoral college, with electors chosen by the voters in each state. Whoever wins 270 electoral votes becomes President of the United States.
Forty states are generally out of contention, as either the Democrat or Republican is guaranteed to win those states. The entire presidential race is based on winning over the least engaged voters in ten states who can be swayed one way or the other. What kind of election is that?
Bernie Sanders is the best person running for president in a very, very long time. He deserves our votes. An all-out effort should be made for him to win the Democratic nomination. All out. That’s Plan A.
But if the forces of Mammon prevail, and Sanders fails to win the Democratic nomination, there is an safe-state strategy that Sanders can choose if he starts in the next few months. The use of this strategy will increase Bernie’s chances of becoming the president of the United States.
While continuing to run for the Democratic nomination, Bernie can hedge his bets. Here’s Plan B.
Bernie can qualify for the fifty state ballots (and D.C.) as an Independent, and choose a slate of electors for each site. He can choose his electors based on their willingness to pledge to vote for the Democratic candidate if the Democrat is in a better position than he is to win the Electoral College.
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