Delaware Throws In With Popular Vote States

Delaware became the 13th state Thursday to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC), a group of states whose objective is to elect the next U.S. President by popular vote.

Delaware Gov. John Carney signed SB22 into law, as reported by the Associated Press, making Delaware the 14th jurisdiction — 13 states plus the District of Columbia — enacting similar legislation. According to Delaware’s Assembly records, SB22 made its way through both legislative chambers without one Republican vote. It commits Delaware’s three electoral votes to the presidential candidate who achieves the majority of votes of the aggregate states regardless of how the state actually votes.

The NPVIC is an agreement between states to pool their electoral votes and voting results together into one aggregate pot. The candidate with the majority receives all electoral votes. States who have formally joined the compact represent 184 electoral votes. The compact becomes official when that number hits 270, or enough votes to elect President of the United States.

The NPVIC does not abolish the Electoral College, which requires amending the Constitution. Rather, by binding electors to vote for candidates achieving a plurality outside their own state, it achieves the results of a popular vote.

The last state to join the Compact was Colorado, joining March 15 as reported by the AP. Currently, one more popular vote bill waits for a governor’s signature in New Mexico (5), according to an AP story. This will bring the total electoral votes to 189.

Per the AP, the NPVIC has been pursuing their objective since shortly after Al Gore’s loss to President George W Bush in 2000.  Legislation has also been introduced in Nevada (6), Oregon (7) and Maine (4).