The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Feb. 7, 2025
Today’s Script
(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)
A New Hampshire Senate bill, just killed in committee, would have moved the state’s four presidential electoral votes to a “Winner by District” system, from “Winner Take All”. Nebraska, the only state besides Maine which apportions its electoral votes by district, is trying to end it.
The National Conference of State Legislatures defines a Winner Take All system as one where the winning candidate’s party, no matter the margin of victory, gets all of the electoral votes.
Currently in Nebraska, which has 5 electoral votes, and Maine, which has 4, one electoral vote is awarded for each Congressional district a candidate wins, and the candidate who wins the popular vote statewide gets the rest.
New Hampshire is currently a winner-take-all state, with two Congressional Districts. SB11 would have adopted the Nebraska and Maine model, likely in anticipation of gerrymandering a guaranteed GOP congressional district. But February 5th, the Senate Election and Municipal Affairs committee recommended that it be killed in an upcoming full Senate vote.
The AP reports that Nebraska’s GOP is irritated that candidates Obama, Biden and Harris won an electoral vote from greater Omaha’s Congressional District 2. Another legislative attempt to end it appears doomed to fail by filibuster, so state Republicans are preparing a ballot measure instead, hoping the voters will change what the legislature could not.
We have local reporting and more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.
Today’s Links
Articles & Resources:
National Conference of State Legislators – The Electoral College
National Archives – Distribution of Electoral Votes
New Hampshire Bulletin – Some push for end to New Hampshire ‘winner take all’ Electoral College allocations
American Democracy Minute – GOP-Controlled NH Legislature Proposes Proportional Presidential Electoral Votes. Will Gerrymandered Congressional Districts Follow?
NH General Court – SB 11 , relative to the allocation of electoral college votes
Nebraska Examiner – Lawmaker proposes ‘backup’ winner-take-all measure for Nebraska presidential electors
AP – The GOP keeps failing to make Nebraska a winner-take-all state. Now it might ask voters to do it
Groups Taking Action:
National Popular Vote, Stand Up America, FairVote, Common Cause US
Register or Check Your Voter Registration:
U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State
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