A plurality of Americans—but not of states—want Donald Trump impeached

Get our daily newsletter Upgrade your inbox and get our Daily Dispatch and Editor’s Picks. DONALD TRUMP owes his presidency to America’s quaint system of electing leaders. Despite losing the popular vote, he prevailed in the electoral college by winning lots of states by small margins and losing a few by large ones. Now, as Democrats prepare to impeach him, a similar quirk is helping him stay in office—and insulating his party from voters’ wrath. Whereas the electoral college is only mildly anti-majoritarian, the Senate often deviates wildly from the popular will. Because each state is weighted equally, voters in less-populous states are over-represented relative to those in large ones. Now that Republicans derive an outsize portion of their support from rural voters, their share of senators exceeds their share of total votes cast in Senate elections. This imbalance weighs on the politics of impeachment. Even if the Senate were apportioned by population, as the House of Representatives is, it would not reach the two-thirds majority needed to convict the president. However, if the chamber reflected public opinion more closely, some Republican members seeking re-election might feel obliged to support his removal. In reality, Republicans are likely to benefit from… Read full this story

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