June 12 cornerstone democracy

June 12, 2020, is a significant date in the history of democracy, particularly in the United States. On this day, the United States Supreme Court issued a landmark decision in the case of Chiafalo v. Washington, which dealt with the issue of faithless electors in presidential elections.

In the 2020 presidential election, several electors from various states, including Washington, Colorado, and Hawaii, had pledged to vote for a candidate other than the one who won the popular vote in their state. This is known as a "faithless elector." The electors claimed that they had the right to vote for any candidate they chose, regardless of the popular vote in their state.

The Supreme Court ultimately ruled that the electors did not have the authority to vote for a candidate other than the one who won the popular vote in their state. The court held that the Constitution and the laws of the states require electors to cast their votes for the candidate who won the most votes in their state.

This decision was seen as a significant victory for democracy and the integrity of the electoral process. It ensured that the will of the people, as expressed through the popular vote, would be respected and that the outcome of the election would be determined by the people, not by individual electors.

The decision also highlighted the importance of the Electoral College system, which is designed to ensure that smaller states have a voice in the election process. The system provides that each state is allocated a certain number of electoral votes based on its population, and that the candidate who wins the most votes in a state gets all of that state's electoral votes, except in Maine and Nebraska, which allocate their electoral votes proportionally.

Overall, the Supreme Court's decision on June 12, 2020, was a significant milestone in the history of democracy in the United States, and it helped to ensure the integrity and legitimacy of the electoral process.