Trump calls Electoral College ‘genius’ after labeling it a ‘disaster for democracy’
President-elect Donald Trump is suddenly a fan of the Electoral College.
Trump in 2012 called the U.S. electoral-vote system a “disaster for democracy.” And in an interview that aired Sunday on CBS News’ “60 Minutes,” Trump said his opinion hadn’t changed even though Hillary Clinton bested him in the popular vote.
“I would rather see it where you went with simple votes. You know, you get 100 million votes, and somebody else gets 90 million votes, and you win,” he told CBS’ Lesley Stahl.
But in a pair of tweets Tuesday morning, Trump declared that the Electoral College “is actually genius” because it empowers smaller states.
Trump also claimed he would have won “won even bigger and more easily” if the U.S. presidency were determined by the national popular vote as opposed to the Electoral College.
If the election were based on total popular vote I would have campaigned in N.Y. Florida and California and won even bigger and more easily
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 15, 2016
The Electoral College is actually genius in that it brings all states, including the smaller ones, into play. Campaigning is much different!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 15, 2016
Under the Electoral College, each state gives its electoral votes to the candidate that wins it. The states’ electoral votes are equal to the number of congressional representatives they have. Every state, no matter how populous, has two U.S. senators — giving relatively more electoral voice to small states.
Clinton, who dominated in states like California and New York, is on track to win the popular vote by between 1 and 2 percent once all the votes are tallied.