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Electing a President by Lot
We could choose our President by picking a ball from a bowl. This was one of many ideas suggested in Congress for replacing the Electoral College system devised by the Founders. The randomness of this method may have been an attempt to sidestep growing sectional rivalries before the Civil War.
The resolution proposed that each state would vote for one of their own residents to be a candidate for President. Each state's name would be written on balls, and the number of balls would be equal to the number of members of Congress from that state (like the Electoral College). The balls would be placed in an urn, and the candidate from the state on the first ball drawn would be President. The name on the second ball drawn would be Vice President.
H.J. Res. 8 proposing a constitutional amendment to elect the President by lot, January 13, 1846
Records of the U.S. House of Representatives |