Be it Resolved That: The Electoral  College Has Outlived Its Original Rationale and Should Be Replaced With a System in Which the Candidate Receiving the Most Votes Wins the Presidential Election Is the Electoral College - the manner in which the United States chooses its President - a weird mechanism that has outlived its original shaky rationale? Or does it ensure that the President of the United States has popular support and that this support is sufficiently well distributed throughout the country? Speaker of the House: James Klurfeld, School of Journalism Parliamentary Whip: Malcolm Bowman, School of Marine & Atmospheric Sciences Government Team (in favor of abolishing the Electoral College): Robert Keeler has been employed for more than 40 years at Newsday, covering local, state and national issues. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for profiling a parish in Westbury. Charles Lavine has been the New York State Assemblyman representing the 13th Assembly District since 2004. He is a lawyer specializing in criminal defense cases. Opposition Team (against abolishing the Electoral College): Jonathan Sanders is Associate Professor of Journalism at SBU. He is also an Edward R. Murrow award-winning international reporter for CBS News and a Fulbright Scholar. Harry Withers has served as the Deputy Director of Planning, the Commissioner of the Board of Elections, the Commissioner of Consumer Affairs, and as a Town Councilman for Suffolk County, and is a former Chairman of the Suffolk County GOP.terests: Public policy; Federalism. All welcome.  The audience votes for the winner (by a simple majority!) Co-sponsored by the Schools of Journalism and Marine & Atmospheric Sciences Reception to follow. Be it Resolved That: The Electoral  College Has Outlived Its Original Rationale and Should Be Replaced With a System in Which the Candidate Receiving the Most Votes Wins the Presidential Election Is the Electoral College - the manner in which the United States chooses its President - a weird mechanism that has outlived its original shaky rationale? Or does it ensure that the President of the United States has popular support and that this support is sufficiently well distributed throughout the country? Speaker of the House: James Klurfeld, School of Journalism Parliamentary Whip: Malcolm Bowman, School of Marine & Atmospheric Sciences Government Team (in favor of abolishing the Electoral College): Robert Keeler has been employed for more than 40 years at Newsday, covering local, state and national issues. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for profiling a parish in Westbury. Charles Lavine has been the New York State Assemblyman representing the 13th Assembly District since 2004. He is a lawyer specializing in criminal defense cases. Opposition Team (against abolishing the Electoral College): Jonathan Sanders is Associate Professor of Journalism at SBU. He is also an Edward R. Murrow award-winning international reporter for CBS News and a Fulbright Scholar. Harry Withers has served as the Deputy Director of Planning, the Commissioner of the Board of Elections, the Commissioner of Consumer Affairs, and as a Town Councilman for Suffolk County, and is a former Chairman of the Suffolk County GOP.terests: Public policy; Federalism. All welcome.  The audience votes for the winner (by a simple majority!) Co-sponsored by the Schools of Journalism and Marine & Atmospheric Sciences Reception to follow.