Originally Posted by Chris T

There should be UN monitors across the whole country. Considering the US is supposed to be the Land of the Free and the very model of democracy, the US Presidential election system is bizarre ... even the Labour Party has been doing away with electoral colleges as a way of voting for things.

How can it be that a State's citizens vote 51-49 for one candidate, but that state's entire alloaction of electoral college votes go to one candidate? How can it be that when an Elector of a particular state gets to the College vote, he is under no obligation to vote for the candidate the citizens of his State chose, but can exercise his vote any way he likes? (According to a report on R4 Today this morning, one such Elector is threatening to vote Kerry at the Electoral College meeting, regardless of whether or not Kerry wins in his state).