Why I Sort of Want Trump to Win the Popular Vote—but Not the Election

Some political experts have been speculating that Donald Trump might win the popular vote in 2024 yet lose in the Electoral College, as Hillary Clinton did in 2016 and Al Gore in 2000 (and Grover Cleveland, Samuel Tilden, and Andrew Jackson before that).

I’m of two minds about this scenario. On one hand, if a plurality of Americans gives Trump their vote—it’s never happened before—that will say something about this country that I prefer not to believe. On the other hand, installing a Democrat...