RIGHT SPEAK: Spanberger Signs Bill To Tie Virginia’s Electoral Votes To California; 'Simple' Popular Vote Plan Would Mean Chaos for 2028 Election; The National Popular Vote: Misusing an Interstate Compact to Bypass the Constitution

Spanberger Signs Bill To Tie Virginia’s Electoral Votes To California:

Democrat Gov. Abigail Spanberger committed Virginia to the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact on Monday, which would tie Virginia’s Electoral College votes to those of California or another densely populated state even if Virginians vote the opposite way.

The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact would “guarantee the Presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.” There are now 18 states (and Washington, D.C.) signed on to the compact, which is not yet in effect since it has yet to meet the 270 electoral vote threshold. But if a few more states join the compact, Virginia (like every other state in the compact) would no longer award its Electoral College votes based on how Virginians vote. Instead, states would award their electoral votes to whichever candidate wins the national popular vote, regardless of how the individual state votes.

Currently, 48 states (not including Maine and Nebraska) allocate all of their electoral votes to the candidate who wins the popular vote within the state, which, of course, is not always the same candidate who wins the popular vote nationally. The system was designed to ensure that candidates could not win on regional density alone, but rather would need a geographic balance. This mechanism forces candidates to take into consideration the varying interests, economies, and industries of all states, not just a few larger states.

But the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact would effectively allow a handful of densely populated states, like California and New York, to dictate the outcome of the election despite both states having vastly different interests from states like Idaho, Nebraska, or Oklahoma.

The founders understood that smaller states would need robust protections of their access to political representation, which is why the founders came up with the system in the first place. Such a system was designed to prevent the “tyranny of the majority,” as Madison warned. Alexander Hamilton defended the Electoral College in Federalist 68, arguing such a process was a safeguard against “cabal, intrigue, and corruption.” --->READ MORE HERE

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'Simple' popular vote plan would mean chaos for 2028 election | Opinion:

Eliminating the Electoral College through a constitutional amendment would be unwise in a country as diverse as ours, but National Popular Vote Interstate Compact will create an unexpected nightmare.

The Commonwealth of Virginia is poised to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, an agreement already joined by 17 other states and Washington, DC, in an attempt to effectively eliminate the Electoral College. Both the state senate and state house approved the measure, and the bill is now awaiting the governor’s signature.

Electoral College opponents will celebrate, but they shouldn’t. Americans do not realize what is about to hit them if the national popular vote becomes reality.

Indeed, the situation bears an eerie resemblance to Prohibition.

When the 18th Amendment was ratified in 1919, most Americans didn’t understand what they were getting: They thought the amendment would result in a ban on hard liquor only. They did not realize that wine and beer would also be included in the broad sweep of the new law.

Many were stunned. They hadn’t signed up for that! A black market for liquor sprang up. People who had been drinking only beer began drinking the easier-to-smuggle hard liquor. Crime increased. Tax revenues were lost.

The reality of Prohibition had not matched the sales pitch.

When the repeal was proposed, that constitutional amendment was ratified in less than a year.

Popular vote plan may sound good, but ...

The same will happen with the popular vote. Its interstate compact is full of surprises for those who want only the elimination of the Electoral College.

On the surface, the idea seems simple: It asks states to sign an interstate compact. By the terms of that compact, each signatory state agrees to pledge its presidential electors to the winner of the national popular vote, rather than the winner of the state’s popular vote.

The compact goes into effect when states holding 270 electoral votes (enough to win the presidency) have signed.

The compact now holds 209 electoral votes. With Virginia's 13, the popular vote organization would be just 48 electors shy of its goal.

Based on historical trends, many Democrats are predicting that state elections this fall will swing their way, increasing the odds that the compact takes effect before the 2028 presidential election.

Unfortunately, this “simple” idea will wreak havoc because an interstate compact cannot change the foundations of our system: It cannot give the federal government authority to override state election codes. Only a constitutional amendment can do that.