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Carter Criticized for Proposal to Abolish the Electoral College

March 28, 1977
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Dr. Judah J. Shapiro, president of the Labor Zionist Alliance, voiced opposition yesterday to President Carter’s proposal to abolish the Electoral College. Speaking to the LZA National Council, Shapiro said elimination of the Electoral College would reduce the political strength of American Jewry and all ethnic groups, as well as American labor in their ability to obtain their objectives through the political process.”

He explained that Jews in areas with large Jewish populations, such as the Northeast, the industrial Midwest, Florida and California, Jews have political clout because their vote can help win the state for a Presidential candidate under the present system. “If we have direct elections, the Jewish population, which represents 2.9 percent of the total U.S. population, cannot possibly have any influence on the results,” Shapiro said.

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