The idea of doing away with the electoral college and the the winner of the popular vote takes the White House is an unpopular one by some Republicans.
Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), and Peter Welch (D-Vt.), introduced the proposed amendment via a press release, Fox News reported.
“In 2000, before the general election, I introduced a bipartisan resolution to amend the Constitution and abolish the Electoral College,” Durbin said, according to the release. “I still believe today that it is time to retire this 18th century invention that disenfranchises millions of Americans.”
“The American people deserve to choose all their leaders, and I am proud to support this effort with Senators Schatz and Welch to empower voters,” Durbin added.
Schatz said that the numbers count.
“In an election, the person who gets the most votes should win. It’s that simple,” Schatz said. “No one’s vote should count for more based on where they live. The Electoral College is outdated and it’s undemocratic. It’s time to end it.”
Welch said the Electoral College does not reflect the will of the people.
“Right now our elections aren’t as representative as they should be because of the outdated and flawed electoral college,” Welch said.
A couple Republicans have spoken out against the proposal.
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) called it “a phenomenally bad idea. So naturally, Democrats are pushing it,” he posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Lee’s colleague, Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), accused the Senate Democrats of wanting “to trample the Constitution.”
“America was never a democracy. We are—and always have been—a Republic,” he wrote on X
In the most recent presidential election President-elect Donald Trump decidedly won both the popular and Electoral College over Vice President Kamala Harris.
However, in 2016, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton won the popular vote while Trump won the Electoral vote, making him the 45th president.
