Posted on 01/14/2008 5:21:48 AM PST by mware
TRENTON, N.J. (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.
(Excerpt) Read more at pressofatlanticcity.com ...
Funny, I don't remember this being on any ballot last November.
Get ready for New York and California to decide the elections.
These laws only take effect if other states adopt them.
Liberals have such courage.
I dont think this thread will continue. Another thread started before this one.
Wouldn’t this require an amendment to the constitution?
mt....the people of NJ did not get a vote in this decision. Corzine is already in trouble here with his proposed increase on tolls.
This thread is more popular with me. Therefore I vote that all the posts on that other thread be moved to this thread. : )
Yes, that is what they are attempting to do. It is one of the two ways the constitution can be amended. Only need enough states to sign on.
Sadly, it will not be tested by the courts until the outcome of an election hinges upon it, and when that happens the courts will either be swayed by popular opinion into falsely sanctifying an unconstitutional measure as constitutional or they will rule correctly and be accused of improperly deciding an election through judicial partiality.
These are only going to be heavily Democrat states trying to sway the outcome of a result similar to Gore/Bush 2000.
Since the end of the Civil War, there have been three (3) Democrats who were elected President with a majority of the popular vote — FDR, LBJ and Jimmy Carter (!). Every other time the Democrats have won with a minority of the popular vote. It would have been nice if the disorganized crime family/third world banana republic that masquerades as a state (New Jersey) had asked the voters, but I don’t see how this hurts Republicans. The Democrats can see only as far back as 2000, and that was truly a “man-bites-tiger” scenario. It’s unlikely to happen again. Ever.
Wait until their electors have to vote for a Republican....then you’ll see how the libs will scream that this is unfair or whatever.
Even ignoring the question of its constitutionality, this is an ignorant idea. People simply do not understand the consequences of essentially rendering the electoral college meaningless. Candidates will simply set up offices in major metropolitan areas and flood the airwaves of major cities with ads. National candidacies will disappear, replaced by “the L.A./San Diego” candidate vs. “the Midwest Candidate” vs. “the N.Y. candidate” v. “the southern candidate” etc. etc. The objective will be to maximize turnout for your guy on your turf. Pundits will be asking, “can candidate X get the 85% of the New York City/Long Island vote that he needs to have a chance to push the election into Congress?”
Actually, correction, it wouldn’t go into Congress, I guess, but this raises the question: when there is inevitably no majority winner, will a plurality be enough to get the electoral votes of all states?
BTW, it’s going to be 14 electoral votes, not 15 after the 2010 Census.
Why should they even show up to the polls?
In effect this changes our form of government from a Representative Republic to a pure democracy as far as our presidential elections go. Once this is explained to everyone and the impact on them is realized it will never fly.
Given the new toll taxes we will be lucky to have 13 votes by 2010.
Only the state constitution. The US Constitution only requires that the state appoint electors. It's leaves it up to the state to decide how. If a state decides that it will apportion the electors by popular vote, that's OK federally.
Mark
Mass. will leap for that as well.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.