Understanding the US electoral system

Before this US Presidential election, I did not pay much attention to their elections, simply because their electoral system is very different from our British-based one. This time, with Astro subscription and BBC World News and CNN available at the touch of a button, I had no choice but followed the news every now and again. Still, it is nice to read articles explaining the US system.

Emeritus Professor of Law at UiTM, Shad Faruqi, in his column in The Star, Reflecting on the law, explains with his article An electoral road paved with quirks...

Excerpt:

"Despite a nationwide poll, the popular vote does not determine the winner of the presidency. That power belongs to the Electoral College.

WHETHER Americans rejoice or bemoan the results of the acrimonious 58th presidential contest, the impact on the globe of Donald Trump’s victory will take time to manifest.

One must remember that no matter how powerful the President may be, hisprogramme is moderated by the checks and balances that the presidency is subject to from the Congress, congressional committees and the judiciary.

Additionally there are extra-constitutional centres of power like the military-industrial complex, the arms merchants, the media, banks, bureaus and lobbies whose entrenched agendas compete with the President’s.

Contrast with Malaysia: the American presidential election contrasts significantly with our system of choosing the prime minister. The United States president is elected by the entire nation.

Our prime minister is a Member of Parliament from one constituency who is appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong because he (the prime minister) commands the confidence of the majority in the lower House.

The date of the presidential election is fixed by law. The president has no power to hold an early poll or to postpone it. In Malaysia, the prime minister can advise the King to call an early election.

Unlike our parliamentary system, no president can seek more than two terms in office of four years each.

The US system permits one party to control the legislature and the other to capture the presidency. This often results in executive-legislature gridlocks. In Malaysia, legislative-executive cooperation is assured because the prime minister controls the elected House.

In Malaysia, the maximum period from dissolution to election is 60 days. In the US a presidential election takes about one-and-a-half years to grind to completion."

Rest of the article: http://www.thestar.com.my/opinion/columnists/reflecting-on-the-law/2016/11/10/an-electoral-road-paved-with-quirks-despite-a-nationwide-poll-the-popular-vote-does-not-determine-th/

Informative video from Youtube: How the Electoral College Works

https://www.youtube.com/shared?ci=28zhb0-UE-I

Link