So I’m a New Zealander and I have a pretty good idea on how the electoral college system works but it honestly sounds like something that can be easily corrupted and it feels like it renders the popular vote absolutely useless unless I’m totally missing something obvious?

So yeah if someone could explain to me what the benefits of such a system are, that would be awesome.

Edit - Thanks for the replies so far, already learning a lot!

    • Skoobie@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      9
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      1 year ago

      What doesn’t? That rural states have more weight via the EC than they would in a popular vote? It’s not a benefit to the country and citizens as a whole, but it is to those individual states.

      • livus@kbin.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        2
        arrow-down
        5
        ·
        1 year ago

        A dictatorship is not a benefit to the country and citizens as a whole, but it is to those individual dictators, too…

        • Skoobie@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          3
          ·
          edit-2
          1 year ago

          Right. Which is why I stated in my original comment that I am in favor of a popular majority vote…

          Edit: typo

          • livus@kbin.social
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            1
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            1 year ago

            Sorry for confusion, thought you were saying it had a benefit.

            My country has Mixed Member Proportional, which means even minorities get some level of representation. I prefer it to winner-takes-all systems like what we had when I was a kid.