There has been much scrutiny over the Electoral College since the Nov. 8 presidential election, considering that Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton won the majority of the popular vote but not the majority of the electors. “This is the only office in the land where you can get more votes and still lose the presidency,” Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., said. “The Electoral College is an outdated, undemocratic system that does not reflect our modern society, and it needs to change immediately.”

There are online petitions, too, one of which has more than 750,000 signatures. We disagree with all of them. Keep the Electoral College.

First, we trust the Founding Fathers in how they created the structure of the federal government, which included electing presidents using electors from each state.

Second, the fact that a candidate can win the popular vote but lose the electoral count is simply a function of the winner-take-all aspect of the Electoral College (with the exceptions of Maine and Nebraska). The system is not designed to be an even tally.

Third, after the primary season is over, candidates would continue to focus on their base, rather than gravitate somewhat toward the center, as they do now. Swing voters in the middle would matter far less because moderates would become less valuable to campaign strategies. You think the races are ugly and polarized now?

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