There is a movement to elect the President of the United States by popular vote. The result would be a small number of states and major urban areas controlling who is elected as president. Votes in places like Colorado would be meaningless.
The Fort Collins Chamber is recommending a NO vote on Colorado Proposition 113.
At the time the United States Constitution was being debated, a major point of contention was how the states could function collectively without the interests of the small states being overwhelmed by the more populous states. Thus was born the Electoral College, which provides a mechanism for the citizens of each state to clearly indicate their preference for president. By doing so, they are able to express their regional interests and perspectives that may not always align with other parts of the nation.
This can occasionally lead to a candidate winning the presidency without winning the popular vote on a national basis. But again, the purpose is to preserve and reflect varying regional interests.
The Colorado Legislature voted along political party lines in 2019 to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. The states in the Compact agree to award their states’ electoral votes to the candidate receiving the most votes nationally. It is questionable whether this is constitutional both in terms of the State Constitution and the U.S. Constitution.
However, many voters do not support giving up control of Colorado’s electoral votes and petitioned the measure onto the state ballot for a vote of the people.
From an economic perspective, Colorado becomes irrelevant to federal leaders under the Compact. Federal funding for highways, federal research, etc. and attention from federal leaders will go to where the votes are the east and west coast.
Click Here for the Chamber’s Election Page and to learn more. Click Here for more detailed arguments on both sides of the issue.
Vote NO on proposition 113.