On April 26, Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed SB 5074. It requires all presidential electors to have signed a pledge, promising to vote in the electoral college for the candidate who received the most popular votes in the state. It is odd that the legislature passed this bill before the Washington State Supreme Court issues an opinion in Guerra v Washington State Office of Administrative Hearings, 95347-3. That is the lawsuit over the old law, which fines “faithless” presidential electors $1,000 if they don’t vote for the expected presidential candidate. The opinion could come out at any time.
When was FIRST State to abolish *faithless* Prez Electors with their evil contempt for the voters ???
Note 14 Amdt, Sec. 2.
So Richard, I suppose that Washington has not and never intends to join the National Vote Compact.
Washington has joined the National Popular Vote Compact.
The new law is more specific, more recent, and inconsistent with the NPV scheme. Washington has implicitly withdrawn from the compact.
The legislature has uncovered a flaw with the proposed compact. They should add language to improve the compact and ask other states to join.
Zero independence for electors = zero point to the electoral college. It only makes sense if they have some discretion.
NPV SCHEME — AKIN TO THE 3 AXIS POWERS PACT IN SEPT 1940 ???
— OR THE EARLIER PACT / CONSPIRACY OF THE SLAVE STATE REGIMES IN 1859-1860 TO SECEDE IF GOP WON PREZ IN NOV 1860 ???
The bill may be trying to comply with the NPV scheme.
Under current law, the elector candidates are chosen at state conventions and pledge to support the eventual nominee of the party, and are fined if they fail to so.
Under the bill, they would execute their pledge after they had been appointed – either based on the statewide winner or the NPV scheme.