MADISON, Wis. — Today, Senators Kelda Roys (D-Madison) and Bob Wirch (D-Kenosha) and Representative Jimmy Anderson (D-Fitchburg) introduced a bill to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which ensures that the presidential candidate who receives the most votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia becomes President.
Under this bill, Wisconsin would join 15 states and Washington D.C. in the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, an agreement among states to award their electoral votes to the presidential candidate who wins the national popular vote. The compact only takes effect once states that total 270 electoral votes pass the Compact. Currently, Compact members have 195 electoral votes; Wisconsin has 10 electoral votes.
Simply put, joining this Compact ensures that the presidential election is like every other election in America — the person who gets the most votes wins.
Every voter deserves to have an equal voice in electing our president. Every vote should matter and every vote should count equally. Right now, this bill would ensure every voter in every state is politically relevant in every presidential election.
Senator Roys, who initially introduced this bill as an Assembly Representative in 2009, said “Every voter, in every state, should matter in every presidential election. The National Popular Vote bill will make every vote equal, and ensure that the candidate who earns the most votes wins. In non-landslide presidential elections, one out of every seven has been a ‘wrong winner’ — where the losing candidate becomes president. American voters deserve better.”
Senator Wirch, who has been a co-author of this bill since 2009: “The fact that under current law a person who gets the most votes might not win the election is ludicrous; the fact that it has happened numerous times shows the need for a change.”
Rep. Jimmy Anderson: “Our current winner-take-all Electoral College system is antiquated and leads to candidates ignoring most of the citizens of our country. A National Popular Vote would ensure that candidates for president would need to understand the needs of people in every part of the United States instead of traveling to just a handful of swing states. It’s past time we reform our presidential elections so that the office of the President of the United States is truly representative of all Americans. Adding Wisconsin to the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact is the next step in achieving that.”
