Before the 17th Amendment to the Constitution, Senators represented the states, and Representatives of the House represented the people. That was why Senators had 6 year terms and Representatives had 2 year terms. The Electoral College utilized the balance of power between the states and the people. The 17th Amendment degraded Senators to 6 year term Representatives who promised social welfare programs to gain reelection by the people ignoring the cost impact to the states. If the Electoral College is to be abolished for some form of popular vote it should be a process that guarantees majority vote instead of just plurality vote.