Or it’s possible the founders just had a lot on their minds and threw the system together at the last minute. Confession: I was hoping to blame the whole Electoral College thing on Thomas Jefferson, who’s possibly my least favorite founding father. Anyway, no matter how it originally came together, we’ve now put the loser of the popular vote in office five times. One involved the Republican Rutherford B. Hayes, who won in 1876 even though the electoral vote was virtually tied and Samuel Tilden easily won the popular vote. George W. Bush lost the popular vote to Al Gore in 2000 — many of you will remember the manic counting and recounting in Florida, which was the tipping point state.

---

Persons: Waldman, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, who’s, Sally Hemings, Jefferson, it’s, we’ve, Republican Rutherford B, Hayes, Samuel Tilden, George W, Bush, Al Gore, Gore, Ralph Nader’s, Robert Kennedy Jr Organizations: Republican, Republicans, Southern Democrats, Black, White Locations: France, Florida