Maine will remain in the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, an agreement among the states that could bring about sweeping changes to how the President of the United States is elected, despite a nearly successful bid to pull out of it last month.
This latest news comes after the House and Senate were unable to agree on whether or not the to withdraw from the Compact, and the bill that would have extricated Maine from the cabal set on sidelining the constitutionally-designated Electoral College was killed by default on this week in accordance with legislative procedures.
If enough states eventually join the Compact alongside Maine, it would effectively override the Electoral College by guaranteeing that the winner of the national popular vote would always be elected president, regardless of who earned the most electoral votes — as Article II, Sec. 1, Causes 1-2 of the U.S. Constitution prescribe.
By joining this Compact a year ago, Maine’s four electoral votes could eventually be awarded to whichever presidential candidate garners the most votes nationwide, irrespective of who the majority of Mainers vote for at the ballot box.
[RELATED: Maine Joins the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact]
Once Maine officially became a part of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, the coalition represented a total of 209 electoral votes — out of 538 in total.
Among the states that have also signed the Compact are: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhone Island, Vermont, and Washington. These are all predominantly “blue,” or Democrat-leaning, states.
[RELATED: Mainers Debate Potential Withdrawal from the National Popular Vote Compact]
Rep. Barbara Bagshaw (R-Windham), the primary sponsor of LD 252 — the bill to withdraw from the Compact — explained that her bill is “rooted in one simple principle: our electoral vote should reflect the will of Maine voters, not the voters of other states.”
Both those supporting and opposing Maine’s participation in the Compact argued during debate on the chamber floor that their positioning was driven by a desire to ensure effective representation in presidential elections.
While those in support of the Compact relied heavily on the idea of one person one vote, those in opposition highlighted how the electoral college gives Maine a more substantial voice in determining America’s president.
[RELATED: Maine Republicans Seek to Withdraw from National Popular Vote Interstate Compact]
At the end of May, the House voted to reject the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee’s majority Ought Not to Pass report in a roll call vote of 76-71, with a handful of Democrats voting alongside Republicans in opposition to the motion.
The Committee’s minority Ought to Pass report which was then accepted without a roll call.
When the bill was sent to the Senate for concurrence, a motion was made to pass the bill, but consideration of LD 252 was then tabled and left as unfinished business for about a month.
[RELATED: Maine House Votes to Withdraw from the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact]
On Monday, the bill was taken off the table, and the motion to accept the majority Ought to Pass report failed in a roll call vote of 16-18, leading to the acceptance of the Ought Not to Pass report in non-concurrence with the House.
This then sent the bill back to the House, where the chamber insisted on its acceptance of the majority Ought to Pass report.
Because the Senate then also insisted on its acceptance of the Ought Not to Pass report, the proposal to withdraw from the National Popular Vote Compact was killed.
In accordance with Maine’s legislative procedures, bills and resolutions are automatically placed in the legislative files as dead if the House and Senate are unable to agree on whether or not they should be approved.
Consequently, Maine will remain in the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact for the foreseeable future.
