Law gives your vote away

Here is something you may not know. In 2009 our state government passed legislation to join an “Agreement among the States to Elect the President by National Popular Vote.”

This legislation is a contract committing our state’s presidential electors (who you really vote for when you vote for a presidential candidate) to be bound by the outcome of the presidential popular vote for the entire nation, which may not be the same as our state’s choice (RCW 29A.56.320 and RCW 29A.56.300).

The legislation takes effect when the combined electoral votes among states joining the agreement add to more than the amount necessary to elect the president… currently 270 votes. So far 11 states, including ours, have joined the agreement, totaling 165 electoral votes. What this means is, once enough states join the agreement and the RCWs go into effect, Washington’s electoral votes will go to whoever wins the nation’s popular vote, regardless of which candidate won our state’s vote. Is that what you want?

This story was originally published October 11, 2016 at 6:04 PM with the headline "Law gives your vote away."