Coloradans Vote To Give All Electoral Votes To U.S. Popular Winner

Denver, CO – Colorado joined 14 other states and the District of Columbia on Tuesday when its voters opted to give all nine of the state’s electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote.

Proposition 113 went onto the November ballot in Colorado after state legislators voted to have the state join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact in 2019, according to The Hill.

Despite approval by lawmakers, Colorado voters had to approve the decision to change the way the state would vote in future Presidential elections.

It passed by 52 to 48 percent on Nov. 3, the Denver Post reported.

“The national popular vote is a very straightforward concept,” Colorado State Senator Michael Foote said. “One person should always equal one vote, and the presidential candidate who gets the most votes should win the election.”

But some critics said that the close margin on the vote showed that not all Coloradans were on board with the important change, the Denver Post reported.

“They were tricked by California billionaires, who spent millions of dollars to buy our votes for president,” former GOP State House Speaker Frank McNulty said. “Colorado’s votes should be decided by Coloradans. This is going to reduce Colorado’s clout, and it’s going to reduce our influence on issues like transportation, water, health care and funding for our military bases.”

With Colorado committed to supporting the national popular vote, the states that have enacted those laws account for 196 possible electoral votes, the Denver Post reported.

The push for a move to the popular voting system began after former Vice President Al Gore lost to President George Bush in the Electoral College in 2000 even though Gore won the popular vote, The Hill reported.

Supporters of the popular vote movement have complained that Presidential candidates only pay attention to swing states and that many important so-called “flyover states” are largely ignored.

“We want to make sure presidential candidates think about people across the country, and what they think — not just voters in Pennsylvania,” Foote told the Denver Post. “The national popular vote is a way to make sure our president gets elected on the principle of one person, one vote.”

Colorado State Representative Jeni Arndt, who sponsored bill in the state legislature, celebrated after voters approved it, the Denver Post reported.

“We all should elect the president together,” Arndt said. “When the presidential winner is the person who gets the most votes – we all win.”