Majority Vote for US President Gains Momentum with Virginia Law

The push for a national popular vote for US president has taken a significant step forward with Virginia becoming the latest state to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. Governor Abigail Spanberger has signed the legislation into law, joining 17 other states and the District of Columbia in the agreement.

The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact is an effort to effectively bypass the Electoral College system and instead award a state's presidential electors to the winner of the nationwide popular vote, regardless of the results within that particular state. The compact will only take effect once states representing a majority of the 538 total electoral votes - that is, 270 votes - have passed the legislation.

With Virginia's addition, the compact now has 222 electoral votes under its control, more than 40% of the way to the 270-vote threshold. This momentum has fueled hopes that the United States could see a shift to a national popular vote for president in the coming years.

The rationale behind the National Popular Vote movement is that it would ensure the candidate who receives the most overall votes across the country becomes president, rather than the current system where a candidate can win the Electoral College without winning the popular vote. This has happened several times in US history, most recently in 2016 when Donald Trump won the presidency despite losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by nearly 3 million votes.

Supporters of the compact argue that it would make every voter's voice count equally, rather than the current system that gives outsized influence to swing states. Critics, however, contend that it would undermine the role of the Electoral College and could lead to a tyranny of the majority.

Despite the controversy, the National Popular Vote movement has steadily gained ground in recent years. In addition to Virginia, the other states that have joined the compact are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.

With Virginia's participation, the compact is now more than 80% of the way to the 270-vote threshold needed to take effect. Should it reach that milestone, it would represent a significant shift in how US presidents are elected and would likely have major implications for future campaigns and elections.