I am urging your readers to consider and support Maine joining the National Popular Vote Compact. It would guarantee the presidency to the candidate who receives the most votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The agreement would make every person’s vote equal throughout the U.S. and it would ensure that every vote, in every state, will matter in every presidential election.

As I speak with people, I find most believe we should elect the president by a vote of the people in all 50 states, and the winner should be whoever wins the most votes. When we vote for every other office, the candidate who gets the most votes wins. It should be the same for president.

Relatedly, I agree with those who think that the Electoral College as it stands now is an outdated system. Someone can get more votes nationwide and still not become president. This shortcoming stems from the state “winner-take-all” laws that award all of a state’s electoral votes to the candidate receiving the most popular votes in each state. Because of these state winner-take-all laws, presidential candidates ignore voters in states where they are safely ahead or hopelessly behind. The general election campaign for president ends up in only a dozen or fewer states. State winner-take-all laws have enabled five of our 45 presidents to come into office without winning the most popular votes nationwide.

Let our representatives know what you think.

Rev. Dr. Douglas Nielsen
Harpswell