What would need to change for US citizens to have more than two choices at election.

Question

I know we technically have more than two choices, but what would need to change for it to simply be 1) person A, 2) person B, or 3) throwaway vote.

And maybe there are multiple avenues?

In: Other

Answer 1

Removing the state level “winner-take-all” laws for the awarding of each state’s electors is the lowest threshold change for empowering third party tickets. It only requires changes to state laws in enough states representing a majority of electoral votes. No constitutional amendments. No constitutional convention.

Awarding all of each state’s electors to the one single numerical winner of the vote in that state prevents third party tickets from ever earning *any* electoral votes in any state. Consequently candidates representing third parties never have any effect on presidential elections beyond acting as spoilers.

If electoral votes were awarded in each state according to the proportion of the total vote received, then a third party ticket could assemble enough electoral votes across all fifty states to prevent *either* of the major party candidates from obtaining the necessary 270 electoral votes.