Virginia is now the latest state to be part of the compact, formally known as the the Agreement Among the States to Elect the President by National Popular Vote, bringing the country closer to a potential shift in how presidents are elected.
“That is certainly the case in our elections at the state level,” she continued. “It is certainly the case in our elections for federal offices such as House of Representatives or U.S. senator, where every single person’s vote counts the same. Unfortunately, that is not the case when it comes to presidential elections, where by virtue of having the Electoral College, depending on the state you live in, your vote does count differently.”
All jurisdictions in the compact are led by Democrats, including Connecticut, which joined in 2018, as well as Delaware and Colorado in 2019.
Since the turn of the century, the Democratic nominee for President has twice won the popular vote only to lose the Electoral College, and the White House. One of those instances saw President Donald Trump claim the presidency for the first time in 2016.
It also comes months ahead of midterm elections across the U.S., in which many more state legislative and gubernatorial seats will be on the ballot, meaning that the partisan balance of power in some parts of the country could potentially shift.
Neither Spanberger nor the White House immediately responded to TIME’s request for comment.
Federal law does not require states to award electoral votes based on their own popular vote results, leaving open the possibility of allocating them based on the national outcome.
If the compact takes effect, it would see participating states change their systems in order to collectively award the majority of electoral votes to the national popular vote winner, regardless of how their own residents vote. In that way, it could effectively shift the way presidential elections are determined without a change to the Constitution or federal law.
Why was the compact created?
NPV argues that the current system’s winner-take-all approach distorts campaign priorities and voter influence. Five U.S. Presidents have taken office without winning the popular vote, most recently when Trump won his first election in 2016.
“In 2024, 94% of the general-election campaign events took place in just seven states. That is, 43 states and 80% of U.S. voters were mere spectators to the presidential election,” according to NPV, which also claims that voter participation in these “battleground states” is higher than in the rest of the U.S.
At the same time, she acknowledged arguments against the bill, saying, “Opponents have raised legitimate questions about whether presidential candidates would want to visit Maine knowing that, under a winner-take-all system, their chance to win our electoral votes declines and, as a result, their time would be better spent elsewhere.”
“Fake Moderate Spanberger just signed a bill to render Virginians’ vote for president NULL AND VOID!” the party said in a post on X.
Public appetite for using the popular vote in presidential elections is strong. In September 2024, ahead of Trump winning reelection, 63% of Americans favored the system over the current electoral college process, according to the Pew Research Center.
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