Letter: Electoral College has stood test of time

Regarding Richard Hileman's Dec. 11 guest column 'Myths and facts about the Electoral College”:

Hileman asserts that the most pervasive myth about the Electoral College is that it was created for good reasons and those reasons no longer exist. He states later that more than 1 in 100 votes cast this year were 'thrown away,” apparently due to the Electoral College.

In my view, the Electoral College forces presidential candidates to address the issues and concerns of all the states. It also gives those of us who are not on the coasts a chance to have our voices heard and an equal vote in the Electoral College. Without the Electoral College, Iowans, and residents of many other states, would be ignored and forced to live as slaves to the will of a few who reside in only some of the counties in less than a dozen states.

The foresight of the Founding Fathers resulted in many procedures that were established when our country was formed and they have stood the test of time. The Electoral College is just one of them.

Sadly, I note that Hileman used his invitation to state his position as an opportunity to direct readers to a site that seems dedicated to overthrowing the Electoral College, moving from offering an opinion to directly soliciting an action to remove an Article of the Constitution (Article II, Section I).

Shame on The Gazette for that.

Stan Thornberry

Cedar Rapids