Election 2000: What happened with the elector in Maryland?

I wasn't here during the 2000 election and I must admit that the electoral college has always been a curious mystery for me, specifically the "electors" themselves.

Now, I know a certain elector from DC didn't vote in 2000 when Gore won that state's electors. I know she was protesting, blah blah blah. But my question is: HOW? How could Gore not have received a vote that he rightfully won? Can the electors just do whatever they want? This really scares me concerning 2004.

Technically, they are free to vote for whomever they choose. However, that is what the primary season is for. We vote for a candidate, thereby ensuring electors for that candidate at the convention. At the convention, each state's elector's vote for a candidate and this is how our candidate is chosen. In the general election, the same thing happens. When a state's vote goes to a certain person, that person's party's electors are chosen to vote. They are not bound to vote for that person. But, a democratic elector who was chosen to support that specific candidate is unlikely to switch support to a Republican and visa versa.

I guess I was thinking they were bound to vote for whomever the state went for. I mean, it's just weird that Gore ended up with 266 instead of 267, which he should have had.

IIRC.

In some states, electors are obligated to vote for the person they were selected to represent (although I don't imagine the penalty for breaking this law is very severe, if there even is one). In other states, there is no legal obligation.

But, electors are not random people off the street. They are elected officials, campaign chairs, party activists, etc. If the DC vote would have made a difference for Gore, the elector would have cast it.

it's the state legislature that certifies the slate of electors who will actually vote when the Electoral College meets to vote. Remember that in 2000 the Florida legislature was making it crystal clear that no matter how the recount went they were going to certify the R slate of electors.

In 2004 it's by no means impossible that some state legislatures that are controlled by Republicans, would certify the R slate, regardless of how the popular vote goes in that state. Think about it.

scares the shit out of me. It just leads me to wonder why we don't just tally up the electoral votes. Why do we need actual electors to vote if all of the electoral votes are to be awarded to the candidate who wins the state? Just to open it up to chicanery?

The Founding Fathers got a lot right, but there wasn't a whole lot of wisdom about electoral politics in those days. As a result, the Constitution doesn't even mention political parties.

The original idea was that each state would send its allotment of electors to the capital (Washington didn't exist yet), and that group would deliberate until a President and vice-President were selected. Candidates and campaigns were not part of the picture.

How the electors were chosen was completely up to the states.

This has been patched extensively, but the original idea remains. Maybe it's time to overhaul it.

There doesn't even have to be a popular vote election held for president according to the Constitution.

State legislatures can choose electors any way they please. The electors elect a president. Though it was one of the original 13 Colonies, South Carolina held its first popular election for president in 1868. Three years after the Civil War, South Carolina voted for Ulysses Grant for president, but that's an entirely different story.

In 1824, New York cast 1 electoral vote for Andrew Jackson, 26 for JQ Adams, 5 for Henry Crawford and 4 for Henry Clay.

In more recent times, One Dukakis elector voted for Bentsen in 1988. In 1976, one Ford elector voted for Reagan.

go to article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution. It's written in pretty plain language.

No federal office-holder can be an elector, including reresentative or senator.

The elector selected for my congressional district was Don Evans, current Secretary of Commerce who introduced George and Laura years ago. When some guys were talking about turning an elector, I thought, well, not this one they won't.