Maine's Democratic-run legislature has advanced a bill that would have the state join an alliance to elect the president according to the national popular vote. Each chamber must hold a second vote for procedural reasons, but both are expected to pass the legislation again, which would send it to Democratic Gov. Janet Mills for her signature.
The bill would add Maine's four Electoral College votes to the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, under which member states would collectively award their electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote. The compact would come into force only once states with a majority of electoral votes have joined.
Currently, the statewide winner gets two of Maine’s electoral votes, while whichever candidate wins in either of the state's two congressional districts gets one additional vote per district.
Democrats have controlled both the legislature and governor's office since 2019, but that year, even though the Senate approved a similar bill, the House narrowly rejected it, with a handful of Democrats joining with Republicans to sink the measure. But this time around, the House passed the proposal despite Democrats having a smaller majority than five years ago, while it easily prevailed in the Senate.
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