New Jersey Rejects Electoral College

Two States Have Now Joined Compact To Give Their Votes To Winner Of The Popular Vote

(AP)  New Jersey on Sunday became the second state to enter a compact that would eliminate the Electoral College's power to choose a president if enough states endorse the idea.

Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed legislation that approves delivering the state's 15 electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote. The Assembly approved the bill last month and the Senate followed suit earlier this month.

Maryland - with 10 electoral votes - had been the only state to pass the compact into law.

The measure could result in the electoral votes going to a candidate opposed by voters in New Jersey, which has backed Democratic presidential candidates since 1988. However, the compact would take effect only if enough states - those with a majority of votes in the Electoral College - agreed to it.

A candidate needs 270 of 538 electoral votes to win.

The compact has also passed both houses of the Illinois Legislature, according to the National Popular Vote movement, and has been approved by one legislative house in Arkansas, Colorado and North Carolina.

The Colorado Senate approved the proposal last year, but a House committee rejected it.

Governors in California and Hawaii vetoed bills to join the compact.

The goal is to ensure that the national popular vote winner becomes president. Democrats who sponsored the bill have noted that their party's 2000 presidential nominee, Al Gore, won the popular vote that year but lost in the Electoral College.

Sponsors contend the agreement would ensure that all states are competitive in presidential elections and make all votes important. It also would guarantee the presidency to the person who received the most votes.

Corzine signed the bill privately Sunday, but spokesman Jim Gardner recently said, "New Jersey, like two-thirds of the nation's states, has long been on the sidelines of presidential races and this measure would help put the Garden State back into competition during a presidential campaign."

Republicans criticized the bill as undermining federal elections.

"This legislation is a constitutional travesty," said Assemblyman Richard Merkt, R-Morris. "It's a back door end run of the federal Constitution."

[Scooter68]

Committing your states electorial votes to the "national popular vote" winner is in fact asking your voters to give up the right to control how their votes are counted. If the state of New Jersey votes overwhelmingly for one candidate yet another candidate wins the national popular vote, the state has in fact nullified their voters will. The state is saying we don''t care how our voters cast their ballots, we are going vote with the masses.

[erichsh]

It doesn''t make much sense to me either. I don''t get why Corzine would go for this. As it stands now, my vote for any NJ Republican presidential candidate might as well be thrown out the window because NJ will invariably, automatically vote Democratic. So the Dem is assured of getting the EC votes under any circumstances as it is now. Under this new law, the Republican candidate might get NJ''s EC votes if the nationwide conditions are right. That''s better than the snowball''s chance now of a Repub getting NJ''s votes.

[tmittelstaed]

"Committing your states electorial votes to the "national popular vote" winner is in fact asking your voters to give up the right to control how their votes are counted."

True. However, the electoral college already makes voters give up their right to control how their votes are counted. If a state votes 49% Republican and 51% Democrat, the Democrats get 100% of the electoral college votes for the national election, essentially disenfranchising all the voters that voted Republican in the state.

Since these provisions only kick in when a majority of states agree to it, these laws are essentially grandstanding because it''s pretty obvious that the majority of states aren''t anywhere near agreeing with it. If that ever happens, the states can easily vote to repeal these laws, and likely would.

What is really missed here is that is if a candidate for President is doing their job during the campaign, the Electoral College votes will never kick in because the election will go to a 60 / 30 split. It is only when candidates during the campaign make a tremendous effort to hide what they really are, and merely play to the crowd, that the voters have so little to go on that nobody can make up their mind and the independent voters end up splitting. That creates tie conditions and a tie vote is what gives power to the electoral college.

[cyberus-2009]

Why make things difficult?
Just make the electoral college votes match the actual votes on a percentage basis,

[scottyusa]

A government, for the people, by the electoral college. We do need to get rid of the electoral college nationally. It is outdated even more than the vacuum tube.

[g02342000]

John Edwards is the only one that will fight poverty and bring health care and education to the poor & middle class of America. The Edwards / Biden ticket would be the best Presidency for all America, anything less will be as bad as keeping Bush in office forever. America deserves honest men of integrity that will fight for all Americans. Edwards is a true patriot that can make America great, he has the substinance, determination, and will to fight greed, corruption and end the outsourcing of our jobs, His economic, education, health and welfare policies are now being copied by all the canidates. Edwards spoke out months and even years before the others. America needs to think about why are the "Washington Greed, Corruption, Large Corporations and Media" trying to make this a two candidate Democratic race? Edwards is the only one able to win the Presidency from the democratic side, and any republican that is nominated will beat Clinton and/or Obama. Only Edwards can fix Bush''s mistakes!

[pepperp1]

Coooooooooooooooool, you go NJ.

[godseyesore-2009]

Good for NJ!!
I HATE the electoral college system. My vote (and yours) doesn''t count if the whole state is given to another choice.

[hwy71so]

A states votes should be representative of that state, not a nod of concession.

[dredre2k]

Way to go New Jersey! Our president should be chosen based on the POPULAR vote... the concept of an electorical college undermines our democracy and reminds us that America is not truly a democracy. All states need to enact similar legislation.

[motherhen11]

Show me some REAL news, like what the Cloverfield monster looks like!

[magoo2u1]

Hopefully I won''t live to see the constitution ignored. Reacting on emotion and tossing logic out the window will result in the US returning to crown rule because the Queen is popular. The electoral college prevents CA,NY,TX,FL from deciding who is president and ignoring the rest of us.
The American people are morons.

[quetzal666]

if this had been the case 7 years ago, the world might look very different..

[rowdytexan2]

Go New Jersey!

I''d certainly like to have my vote count instead of having someone else decide which candidate gets my whole state.

[quetzal666]

"He who votes decides nothing; he who counts the votes decides everything." - Joseph Stalin

[hwy71so]

"Go New Jersey!

I''''d certainly like to have my vote count instead of having someone else decide which candidate gets my whole state.

Posted by RowdyTexan2 at 10:32 AM : Jan 14, 2008"

So, if Texas votes 98% J. Ross Perot, you vote Perry, the rest of the country votes 75% Perry, you think the 98% that voted for Perot should go to Perry? THAT is what they are saying. The state no longer has a voice, the people of that state no longer have a voice. It is merely a vote of concession.

[undermyboot]

One purpose of the Electoral College was to give individual STATES more equal power, regardless of their size. This country was founded as a Federal System, with most rights reserved to the States. The Electoral College ensured that the big states (like PA at the time) could not dictate the Presidency, and thus have a stranglehold on Federal power.

Times have changed and there is no longer a need to "equalize" power between states. The Electoral College should go.

However, there IS a real need to reduce the power of the FEDERAL government, which has put its fingers in every nook and cranny of our lives. The massive power of the Federal Government DOES violate the intent of our founders and the Constitution they created. THIS is a much bigger issue!

[klingon69]

Why make things difficult?
Just make the electoral college votes match the actual votes on a percentage basis,
Posted by cyberus at 08:06 AM : Jan 14, 2008
That''s a logical idea...you will be punished.

[thgdriver]

Democrats who sponsored the bill have noted that their party''s 2000 presidential nominee, Al Gore, won the popular vote that year but lost in the Electoral College.

Where were the same Demonrats in 1960 when Nixon (Republican) won the popular vote but lost to John Kennedy (Demonrat) in the Electoral College.

The Demonrats make me sick, they only want to change things when it suits them. LOL!

[thgdriver]

if this had been the case 7 years ago, the world might look very different..

Posted by Quetzal666

Right and if this had been the case in 1960, Kennedy would not have been assassinated. Nixon Would have won .

But then again you Demoncraps only can see back seven years ago.

[thgdriver]

Who gives a crapp what New Jersey thinks. I understand a flying UFO landed there, Found no intelligent life and left.

[thgdriver]

Hummmmmmmmm, if Jersey is so great how come they don''t charge to get in but charge to get out.

[thgdriver]

Just make the electoral college votes match the actual votes on a percentage basis,
Posted by cyberus

If the Democrats, Republicans, Green Party, Independents, etc. each shared a percentage nobody would Get a majority. We''d be right back to the supreme court again.

[boatdocster]

The right answer is to dump the Electoral College all together and go with straight popular vote - for that matter I''d do the same in primary elections (straight popular vote, candidtate with the most popular votes at the end of 50 states is the parties representative)

1) This would pick a winner only after all 50 states had voted - current system almost eliminates some states from voting if you have a strong winner early on

2) Take the selection out of the parties hands and put in back in the people''s hands

[boatdocster]

Quetzal666

Excellent quote.

I was not aware that Stalin was an early GOP man but the US GOP is starting to catch up with old Joe on tactics. Gotta love those Diebold machines!

[Scooter68]

In some ways it would make sense to completely do away with the concept of an electorial college and individual states votes. A strict by the numbers vote nationwide would eliminate a lot of this foolish behavior we get now where candidates ignore states they have ''already lost.'' Candidates will always go to where the largest numbers of voters live but at least now they concept of totally ignoring a state deemed ''lost'' would go out the window.

[sanfelz]

The Electoral College was developed as a compromise between large states and small states, just as Congress was split between the House and the Senate. For all its flaws, the Electoral College usually provides a clear winner of an election while reinforcing a two-party system.
No decision by NJ has any force of law and is merely an expression of preference. Mr. Merkt is a hopeless partisan who is unconcerned by State Constitutional mandates when it applies to funding urban education.

[abbe91]

The Demonrats make me sick, they only want to change things when it suits them. LOL!
Posted by thgdriver at 02:22 PM : Jan 14, 2008"

Like in Texas ???

[abbe91]

"For all its flaws, the Electoral College usually provides a clear winner of an election while reinforcing a two-party system.
Posted by sanfelz at 08:26 AM : Jan 15, 2008"

The problem is that with popular vote, you need to hack voting machines everywhere, not just in Ohio, Florida ...

[abbe91]

"In some ways it would make sense to completely do away with the concept of an electorial college and individual states votes. A strict by the numbers vote nationwide would eliminate a lot of this foolish behavior we get now where candidates ignore states they have ''''already lost.''''
Posted by gscotth at 12:58 AM : Jan 15, 2008"

I agree. This is much better than the silly idea of splitting the votes of California while leaving Florida as it is.

[Con Mohrat]

"It''s not the people who vote that count. It''s the people who count the votes." (Josef Stalin)

He must have been talking about the USA

[sgtrds]

The only way this could work fairly is if the entire Electoral College was dumped nationwide at the same time. Other then that one party or another will try to get it passed only in the states where it would favor one or the other. Personally I say dump the whole dam*n thing.

[killtheliars]

hopefully all states will drop the electoral college. Since the cities have much larger populations and tend to vote democrat that would probably mean the end of republicans in the white house. sounds good to me!

[samsel3]

We can all talk about the past, but what about now and the future ? Presently the CNP Council for National Policy is planning your future. This secretive organisation of several hundred of the richest men in the USA put Bush & Cheney in office to accomplish their global agenda. In September 2007 they met again in Salt Lake City. Cheney & Mitt Romney were keynote speakers. Romney wants their backing. The CNP wants to continue their agenda in global market control for BIG OIL & allied industry in the next election. National media outlets are owned by their members. Who will expose them? Who will stop their insanity and destruction of constitutional freedom ? Who will stop their misuse of the military to promote their global agenda? Paul Wolfowitz,Don Rumsfeld, Scooter Libby, George Bush, Richard Cheney, Eliot Cohen. Zalmay Khalilzad, Steve Forbes, Donald Kagan, Pete Rodman, Henry S Rowen, Dan Quale, William J.Bennett, Jeb Bush, they are all members of the PNAC Project for a New American Century.

[bhappy2-2]

Personally I say dump the whole dam*n thing.

Posted by SgtRDS

I agree. This is an outdated method of selecting our leader. The majority is supposed to rule, but the States actually control the outcome with the electoral college. If all states will adopt this the PEOPLE will choose our leader.