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Hi,
Last week, the Maine legislature brought us one big step closer to ending the current Electoral College system by narrowly voting to become the latest state to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact.1
Maine Governor Janet Mills now has 10 days to either sign the bill, veto it, or allow it to become law without her signature.
Maine would be the 17th state to join the compact and would bring the total number of electoral votes pledged to the winner of the national popular vote for president to 209. Once the 270 electoral vote margin is reached, the compact goes into effect, and we can finally send the current, undemocratic Electoral College system to the dustbin of history.2
Twice in the last six presidential elections, the candidate who lost the popular vote won the White House: George W. Bush in 2000 and Donald J. Trump in 2016.
It almost happened again in 2020. In that election, Joe Biden won by more than 4% and 7 million votes, but because of the way the Electoral College currently works, the election was actually decided by just 25,000 or so votes in a handful of states.3
That's 0.02% of 154.6 million votes cast nationwide — not even enough people to fill a Major League Baseball stadium. It makes no sense.
Let's be clear: This isn't about helping one party or another win. It would be equally undemocratic if Joe Biden won the White House while losing the popular vote.
In states like Maine, more and more people are making the case that Republicans, Democrats, and unenrolled voters are all effectively disenfranchised in solidly red and blue states. After all, if you're a Republican living in Maine's First Congressional District, which goes heavily Democratic year after year regardless of who's running, your vote hasn't mattered for at least 30 years.4
Demand Progress Action isn't some johnny-come-lately to this issue. We've advocated for years to end the current, undemocratic Electoral College system and mobilized tens of thousands of people to call for this change.
With gratitude for all that you do,
The team at Demand Progress Action
Sources:
1. News Center Maine, "Maine is a step closer to adopting popular vote for presidential elections," April 3, 2024.
2. National Popular Vote, "Status of National Popular Vote Bill in Each State," accessed April 8, 2024.
3. CNN, "Presidential Results," updated May 5, 2021.
4. Beacon, "Let's make sure Republican votes matter in Maine (seriously)," April 4, 2024.
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