Posted on 01/14/2008 4:29:25 AM PST by plan2succeed.org
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.
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.
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.
Governors in California and Hawaii, though, 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 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.
Republicans in the state criticized the bill as undermining federal elections. "This legislation is a constitutional travesty," Assemblyman Richard Merkt said. "It's a backdoor end-run of the federal Constitution."
On the Net:
* National Popular Vote: http://www.nationalpopularvote.org
A dangerous and distrubing trend. Any chance for a Federal appeal? Our founding fathers knew what they were doing. COrzine and the left wing do not.
This will limit primaries and campaigning to the 7 major states who have enough popular votes to elect the president(Good).
The seven major states are mostly liberal, so we’ll never have a conservative elected to lead the Country (Bad)
Another elected official who didn’t read the Federalist papers.
The electoral college is in place, among other reasons, to help prevent someone like Hitler coming to power, for example.
Also, the liberals better be careful here...they don’t have a populist platform or ideology, thus a popular vote wouldn’t be in their best interest.
This doesn’t mean shinola! It’s like the gay marriage issue, it won’t apply federally, or in any other state in the country. Even if it did the government would not recognize this usurping crap, and ignor the stupidity of it.
ML/NJ
Article IIThere is no requirement in the Constitution for there to be a popular vote for the state's electors. The state legislature could just decide to give the electors to a particular candidate without giving the people a voteSection 1. The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his office during the term of four years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same term, be elected, as follows:
Each state shall appoint, in such manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a number of electors, equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or person holding an office of trust or profit under the United States, shall be appointed an elector.
You just can't make this up. Here's the scenario:
2000 all over again and the gop candidate has a slight, <1%, nationwide margin over the dhimmi.
All of Jesey's electorial votes revert to the GOP which had no chance to go GOP.
Brilliant!!!
even better...you don’t stay up all night to see how Ohio’s vote goes in 2004...because Bush is winning popular vote by 2 million...night is over early, NJ’s votes go to Bush.
Lol...stupid dhimmis...
...Oh, they know exactly what they're doing. Their goal is a totalarian socialist society, and as long as they can pit their 51% against 49%, they can chip away at the basic structure of this dying constitutional republic.
This is a major step towards their goal. New Jersey's votors have just lost their voice while California has gained the electoral votes of New Jersey.
The United States is as good as dead, killed from within by the left. It's very near time to hit the 'reset' button.
Also, recounts of close elections will not be limited to one or two states - if this were to come to pass, every vote could be challenged.
Any close election would be a guaranteed nightmare, equivalent in scope to the worst third-world contests.
The founders knew what they were doing. Ideas like this (and the 17th amend.) make sense only superficially - thoughtful consideration shows their folly.
This is not unconstitutional, but it IS just plain stupid. It’s motivated by the left-wing’s still-burning anger at their close 2000 loss, where Gore got the popular vote, but Bush won electorally. Dems thinks that now, if enough State’s sign on to this plan, that they’ll be set and will never lose again. We’ll see what they do the first time this plan actually goes into effect, and a Republican wins the popular vote, and suddenly the electoral votes from all these liberal States are going to the GOP. I’m pretty sure that in the next legislative term a whole lot of States would be repealing their new Electoral Vote laws.
The real irony in this, is that NJ was one of the two states that promoted the Great Compromise.
They are trying to subvert the constitution. No surprise for radical marxist democrats.
Unfortunately, this is a law that is Constitutional. The Constitution provides that the method of choosing the electors will be decided by state legislators.
I won an argument with a liberal in 2000 by showing him this provision. In Florida, the court tried to determine the method of choosing the electors in violation of this provision. Since it was a matter of Constitutional law, it was proper for the Supreme Court to decide the case.
In the case of the Jersey law, it would pass Constitutional muster, but it may violate Federal voting rights statutes. It should make for a fascinating case for the Supremes.
Dave, it might have been nice if the Corzine would have given the people of NJ the choice of voting for this measure. I dont recall it being on any ballot in November.
The problem is that it is quite possible for the Repubs to win the popular vote but still lose the electoral votes....but if NJ truly delivers its electoral votes to the popular winner, despite the state going for the loser of the popular vote it will have shot itself in the foot!
“it might have been nice if the Corzine would have given the people of NJ the choice of voting for this measure. I dont recall it being on any ballot in November.”
Unfortunately, while it would have been nice, the Constitution is pretty clear “Each state shall appoint, in such manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors....
Texas is one of the major states and is not liberal.
This is still a horrendous idea and part of the ongoing efforts of the libs to destroy ever institution that makes America great.
On the other hand, if the Rats win the popular vote as in 2000 (discounting massive fraud), then the NJ vote goes to the democRAT regardless of the NJ vote. Granted, that vote is expected to be democRAT anyway.
Now, if Hitlery wins, you can bet that before the REpubs can take back the house and/or Senate (and perhaps even with Repub majorities, given the RINO factor), we will see a bill pass that will somehow give illegals the right to vote. And since they are primarily wards of the state, guess which way the majority of them will vote? Now, with several million extra voters, mostly democRAT, you'll see California's ability to sway an election become larger than it's electoral vote would suggest.
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.