Paul Krugman writes in New York Times October 25, 2018: “So how do Republicans manage to win elections? Partly the answer is that gerrymandering, the Electoral College and other factors have rigged the system in their favor; Republicans have held the White House after three of the past six presidential elections, despite winning the popular vote only once.”

This is wrong.

First, gerrymandering has nothing to do with presidential elections. Second, more importantly, no one knows who would win the popular vote if the major parties campaigned everywhere. Third, the Electoral College is not “rigged” in favor of either party: it is fundamentally unfair to most Americans. In some elections, the system aids one party more than the other, but the advantage shifts from election to election. It is, however, always unfair to most people, and always a bad idea for democracy.