Tallahassee, Fla. – The LWVFL applauds Rep. Joseph Geller (D-Aventura) for filing HB 367 which, if passed, would allow Florida to join the states that have already enacted the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. The Compact is designed to ensure election of the President and Vice President of the United States by popular vote.
States signing onto the Compact agree to instruct their electors to vote for the candidate who wins the national popular vote. If enacted by Florida, the Compact would have 194 of the 270 electoral votes needed to activate the Compact.
“Passage of this act by the Florida Legislature would ensure that Floridians’ votes for President count as much as residents in all other states, which is not the case today,” declared Pamela Goodman, president of the Florida League. “Floridians’ votes are worth only a third of residents of less populous states because of the Electoral College formula.” She added that the “winner-take-all” rule further diminishes the value of a resident’s vote for President, since all electoral votes currently go to the person winning in that state, even if by a bare majority.
The League’s effort to gain passage is being led by the LWV Palm Beach County, which is working with other Leagues around the state to educate legislators in their districts about the benefits of NPVIC for their constituents.
“We applaud Representative Geller’s leadership on this issue, and are working with him and others to secure additional sponsors in the House, as well as the Senate, for this critically needed legislation,” said Karen Wilkerson, president of the LWVPBC. “This bipartisan issue affects every resident of our state, and we hope that Florida legislators support the democratic principle that all votes should count the same, regardless of where you live.”
Observing that all other public officials are elected by popular vote across the country, Goodman added: “Why shouldn’t the President and Vice President be subject to the same standard that applies to how we choose governors, senators, congressmen, state legislators and all other elected public officials? It is time we addressed this imbalance.”
She noted that the Compact would also help reverse voter disenfranchisement and thus likely increase turnout in state and local elections as well.
The Compact complies with Article II of the Constitution that specifies states have sole authority to elect the president; thus, activation does not require any change or amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The League has supported the National Popular Vote for over 40 years.
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