Few features of American government are argued about more heatedly than the Electoral College. This essay sets out the case for it, the argument its serious defenders actually make, grounded in federalism and coalition-building, and then marks honestly where that case is genuinely contested. Not a verdict, but a fair hearing of a real disagreement.

Field Notes on the Republic was written and read by Michael Fowler. It was produced for Quorum (Supply Co.), an American civic purveyor. Music is "When Johnny Comes Marching Home," performed by the U.S. Military Academy Band, West Point.