‘Each vote carries equal importance’

To the Editor;

The late U.S. Sen. Bob Dole, Republican of Kansas, was not only a supporter of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, but in 1979 expressed his support for the direct elections:

“Were we to switch to a system of direct election, I think we would see a resulting change in the nature of campaigning. While urban areas will still be important campaigning centers, there will be a new emphasis given to smaller states. Candidates will soon realize that all votes are important, and votes from small states carry the same import as votes from large states. That to me is one of the major attractions of direct election. Each vote carries equal importance.”

(http://archive.fairvote.org/?page=1056).

Presidential election history since 1979 has merely underscored, quite dramatically, the fatal flaws of the current convoluted approach to electing the president.

Lori Calderone

Dover-Foxcroft