During the 2000 and 2004 presidental elections, it became painfully obvious that the United States needs to reform its procedure for choosing a president, the electoral college. The slow evolution of the electoral college from a restrictive, elitist system is not yet complete. The method for choosing the "leader of the free world" should truly reflect the voice of the people in the "land of the free and the home of the brave."
Rather than replacing a time honored system that, after all, has only broken down three times in over 200 years, the organization of the states should be altered. In 2000, the Census Bureau determined the United States population to be 281,421,906, distributed in 50 states and one federal district. The states ranged in population from to 493,782 (1) to 33,871,648 (2). This Electoral Reform Map redivides the territory of the United States into 50 bodies of equal size - 281,421,906 divided by 50 is 5,616,997. This map shows one possible way to redraw the fifty states (3).
The map was laid out with no political orientation or wealth. As a result, states may be favor one or the other parties. A map redrawn to be result in states that, politically, individually reflect the entire nation would be interesting to see. A map that divided that states evenly according to wealth would also be interesting.
see a bigger version of this map
see detail of the New York area
Advantages of this map:
- Ends overrepresentation of rural areas and underrepresention of cities in presidental voting.
- Ends the imbalance of federal funding in favor of small states.
- Preserves the historical structure of the electoral college and the United States unique federal system, balancing power between levels of government.
- States could be redistricted after each census - just like house seats are distributed now.
Disadvantages
- Some county names are duplicated in new states.
- Local governments would have to deal with shift in state laws and procedures.
The names given above are provisional. They where generally decided by choosing a geographical feature that previously divided or sat near the boundary of two states. If you have suggestions for other names or other feedback, please e-mail postmaster[atsign]fakeisthenewreal[dot]org.
- (1) Wyoming
- (2) California
- (3) Lines are approximate - Every effort was made to place major cities and their close-in suburbs in a single state, leading to slight variences in state sizes. Each state shown has a population between 5.4 and 5.635 million. Most are 5.616 million. Although not shown, the District of Columbia is preserved as it is.