Since 2016, we have heard that the Russians interfered with the Presidential election. We have also heard that although it is an unprecedented misinformation campaign, no actual votes were changed. In other words, the Russians did not hack the voting machines and change votes.
Just for a moment, imagine the following. In June of 2017, after Donald Trump was sworn in as President, evidence was presented that has shown, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that people who voted for Hillary Clinton actually had their vote changed and it registered as though they voted for Donald Trump. Can you imagine the chaos? We would be on the brink of a revolution.
Our nation would be in an uproar. Our fellow citizens would lose faith in our election process, although in some ways, that faith is already teetering. Members of Congress would hold hearings and “impeachment” would be the word of the day (oh wait, that is already the word of the day and vote changes did not happen).
Our relationship with Russia would be virtually non-existent and we might be on a course for war. At the very least, our fellow citizens would feel robbed of their votes, something most of us consider sacred.
The thing is, we no longer have to imagine this happening. The Maine Legislature is attempting to do what Russia did not, steal our votes and they are using the legislative process to do it. They believe, erroneously, that using a gavel and a pen makes the theft of our votes for President okay. They are wrong.
A proposal in the Maine Legislature to tie Maine’s four Electoral votes to a multi-state compact would award our Electoral votes to the candidate that won the “National Popular Vote (NVP).” This means that if Maine’s people voted for candidate A, but candidate B won the NVP, candidate B would get Maine’s Electoral votes.
Let us start with their first erroneous premise. There is NO national popular vote. It simply does not exist. We have fifty (50) individual state elections for President. We do NOT have a national popular vote for the Presidency. Fifty individual state elections for President happen on the same day, the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, every four years.
Why does this distinction matter? The answer is quite simple. The strategy to win a “national popular vote” is a very different strategy than the one used to win 270 Electoral Votes (the number required to win under the Electoral College) by winning individual state elections whose Electoral votes reach that total.
As an example, a state like Maine, with 1.3 million people and even less voters, would not matter in a “national popular vote” election. The density of population in the great population centers makes campaigning in a rural state like Maine inefficient and therefore, un-necessary. In other words, Maine would not see a Presidential candidate again, unless they were vacationing here.
The Electoral College is a construct of Our Founders and it demonstrates their genius, then and now. Since Hawaii and Alaska were added as states, 270 Electoral Votes has been the magic number to win the Presidency. Candidates have cobbled together an odd collection of states to achieve the magic number. This alone demonstrates the brilliance of this process. It takes states like Maine, New Hampshire, Montana, Wyoming, Rhode Island and so on, states with very little population and makes them players in the election of the President.
As an example, in 2016, candidate Donald Trump visited Maine five times. His family members added two more visits for a total of seven visits during the campaign. Maine is one of two states (Nebraska) that splits its Electoral Votes by Congressional Districts, making Maine even more competitive.
In a close election, Maine’s lone Electoral Vote could be the difference in the Presidential race. In 2016, I ran ten scenarios on-air about how the Electoral Votes would break down. In two of those scenarios, Maine’s Second Congressional District and its one Electoral Vote decided the Presidency.
In the end, Donald Trump won over 300 Electoral Votes and with it, the Presidency, but that does not disavow the importance Maine may have played in the election. It also clearly demonstrates why candidate Trump and his family spent so much time here.
Although I am a great believer in the Electoral College process for electing the American President, if our nation wants to move to a national popular vote election, so be it. There is a process for doing that, however, it requires honor, integrity and a willingness to work.
It is not easy to amend our Constitution, nor should it be, but it is possible as it has been amended 27 times. It requires intelligence, organization, integrity and most of all, hard work. Amending our Constitution should not be undertaken lightly, but Our Founders, again in their collective genius, did afford this process, if it is the will of 3/4s of the state legislatures.
A work around the U.S. Constitution to change its intent without undergoing the necessary work is a deceptive practice. It undermines our rule of law. It demonstrates a cavalier and crass attitude toward the governing document of our land.
More importantly, circumventing the Constitution to achieve a political goal illustrates utter contempt for the citizens that they were elected to represent. Elected supporters of the NVP in the Maine Legislature ignore the will of their constituents.
Recently the members of the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee of the Maine Legislature voted the proposal to join the Multi-State Compact that circumvents our Constitution, 7 to 6 “Ought Not to Pass.” Although the recommendation out of committee is important, its close vote nature does not mean this will not eventually pass when it comes to the full floor of the Maine House and the Maine Senate.
Please continue to call Governor Janet Mills’ office at 207-287-3531. Please be respectful as it is staff who answer the phone. Please tell Governor Mills to veto this piece of legislation and protect the Presidential vote of the people of Maine.
Ray Richardson is the host of the Ray Richardson Show on WLOB Radio. He has authored three books, written a newspaper column for over a decade and is a contributor to Richardson Magazine.
Ray lives with his wife of almost 34 years Dee Dee in Westbrook Maine. They have four children (8 when you count the spouses) and one granddaughter.
