Americans ready for direct democracy

I try to avoid posting about polls, but this one is worth mentioning. It's a sentiment that predates the debacle of the 2000 election and is now gaining traction even with Republicans. A majority of Americans want to eliminate the Electoral College.

Nearly 11 years after the 2000 presidential election brought the idiosyncrasies of the United States' Electoral College into full view, 62% of Americans say they would amend the U.S. Constitution to replace that system for electing presidents with a popular vote system. Barely a third, 35%, say they would keep the Electoral College.

The EC is a relic that was originally enacted to appease those who didn't want direct elections by the people at all. It's long outlived any utility, if indeed it ever had any. The President is elected to represent all the people. It only makes sense that this office be determined by a majority vote. In fact, if we had a truly representative Congress, it would have eliminated long ago.

[More posts daily at the Detroit News.]