Originally Posted by LT6916
Electoral college - unlike European countries, the US doesn't not hold referendum. Voting online...that would be the worse thing ever as the system could glitch, or worse, be hacked into.
More and more, the electoral college is fading and the votes are really starting to count, as seen in FL in 2000.
The electoral college was established because the government didn't trust your average citizen to cast an intelligent vote. It will not go away because it is written into the US Constitution; it cannot be changed without a constitutional amendment. Although the electoral college delegates usually vote along the lines of each state's popular vote, they are under no obligation to do so, and there have been instances where electors voted against the popular will.