"The US electoral system is in dire need of reform" 35/45, Tamanna Moushumi

The US electoral system is a complicated and lengthy mechanism which is stuck in a historical era and ceases to serve the modern 21st century electorate. Reforming the electoral system proves fundamentally crucial in achieving a fully participating electorate who represent democracy. Debatably, the question to reform the electoral system arises due to the porous nature of the US system , making it far too easy to exploit elements of campaign finance and manipulate the way voters cast their votes.

Campaign finance proves problematic in the US system of elections. As a result of the McCutcheon v FEC decision, the limits previously established by FECA and BCRA were lifted, allowing an unlimited flow of money to be injected into an election cycle; with donors such as Sheldon Anderson donating $93 million in the 2012 election as an exhibition of his 1st Amendment rights. Contrastingly, the reforming of the electoral system regarding finance has made elections more transparent, which has permitted members of the public and press to see what is donated by who. Such reforms to the system have allowed the creation of SuperPACs which cease to have donations taken by candidate but by party. However, it could be argued that greater reform of the system is required because corporations are not entitled to 1st Amendment benefits - much of where Anderson would have got his donations from, his corporation being his casino.

Similarly, by exploiting the loopholes of finance, the election result is manipulated; which also happens as a result of gerrymandering or redistricting the boundaries of states. Gerrymandering appears as an element of the electoral system in need of reform due to the mathematical manipulation it entails. The "earmuff" district illustrates this manipulation through the packing of the Latino minority into the district which will unequivocally produce a minority. However, this limits the number of minorities selected as House Representatives, if they are all packed into the same district. The North Carolina 12th district appears as the most gerrymandered state, reported by the Washington Post having suffered from "political pornography". However, gerrymandering creates safe seats which secure tenure and experience congressionally. North Carolina, 12th district produced a 21 year incumbent, Mel Watt who had amazing political experience, displaying the positive aspect of gerrymandering and incumbency having a direct correlation. Having said that, however gerrymandering is ultimately manipulation district boundaries which proves the electoral process is neither fair nor equal.

Whilst gerrymandering promotes voting in a certain procedure, voter ID laws work to create preventative procedures to disenfranchise certain members of the electorate. The Shelby County v Holder case permitted the state to control voting procedures, which were previously at the discretion of federal government. Allowing preventative procedures by legalising them ceases to be an effective form of democracy, but places the electorate back in the 19th century, where Jim Crow laws were still prevalent. However, the use of such voter ID laws could be seen as a means of protecting the electoral system and enhancing democracy, as the Texas turnout increased by 63% as a result of the Shelby County decision. Having said that, by promoting federalism, a fifty way America emerges, and a disregard for central government which ceases to be an effective utilisation of democracy. Manipulation of the electorate by such laws proves the system is in dire need of reform.

Manipulation of the system by states does not end with voter ID laws, however. By promoting federalism, states are able to "pull the master lever" and use the option of straight ticket voting, in states including Texas, West Virginia and Utah. This mechanism permits the electorate to vote on a party basis rather than on a candidate basis. This proves disproportionately appropriate considering the extremes to which the system places on the initial candidate selection process. Comparatively, whilst straight ticket voting is seen as easier, split ticket voting is compulsory in some states, suggesting reform has already been attempted. Having said that, it is neither the state of federal government's decision in the way people are to vote, suggesting that making either of these options compulsory is an infringement on voting rights.

"Pulling the master lever" only contributes to candidate selection of Congressmen. One of the greatest problems in the US electoral system is the use of the Electoral College, which ceases to permit citizens the right of directly electing their president. The Electoral College appears as anachronistic measure that ceases to promote democracy, putting the selection of the presidency into the hands of 538 electors who have votes of disproportionate and unequal value. A vote in the least populous state would carry three times as many votes as one in Ohio, proving the system to be of mathematical disparity. Contrastingly, the Electoral College being reformed to a system of popular voting would erase the constitutional planks that the Founding Fathers intended; with a voice to the least populous states. Reformation of the Electoral College is however a fundamentally crucial step to creating a better electoral system where the president has a popular mandate to govern.

In conclusion, the manipulation of the electoral system by gerrymandering, campaign finance and straight ticket voting pose the need for further reform. Arguably, such reform would ensure greater participation by the electorate rather than an exploitation of the incredibly porous system. In doing so, the electoral system could increase from 36.3% (2014 midterms) illustrating an improvement to US politics.