February 2023 – Update
Florida State Rep. Michael Gottlieb Files National Popular Vote Bill to Make Every Vote Equal
DAVIE, Fla. – February 6, 2023 –Florida State Representative Michael Gottlieb (House District 102) introduced the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact “NPV” Bill (House Bill 53) to guarantee that the candidate with the most votes wins the U.S. presidency. Senator Victor Torres (Senate District 15) intends to file a companion bill in the Senate.
“The 2020 election and the aftermath has again highlighted the flaws in our current system. We need the legislature to pass this bill now,” said Gottlieb. “All public officials are elected by a majority of the popular vote except two—the president and vice president,” said Gottlieb. “The candidate who wins the most votes in all 50 states should be president.”
Florida is among 48 states with winner-take-all laws passed in the 1800s that award all of the state’s electoral votes to the winner of the state’s popular vote. The NPV bill would replace the winner-take-all law in Florida so that all of the state’s 30 electoral votes would go to the candidate who wins the most total votes in all 50 states.
“Taking a conservative approach, the NPV bill does not eliminate the Electoral College, nor does it require a constitutional amendment,” said Gottlieb. “It is passed by the states, which have plenary authority over how they award their electoral votes under Article 2 Section 1 of the Constitution.”
“Currently, presidential candidates campaign in just eight to ten battleground states, neglecting to visit the other 40 or more states,” said Kathleen Crampton, Founder & Chair of Floridians for National Popular Vote. “The result has been the election of five minority presidents—George W. Bush and Donald Trump in the last two decades—and low turnout in states overlooked by candidates who focus their attention on fringe issues and voter groups. Enacting NPV would encourage candidates to campaign in all 50 states and to focus on issues important to all voters, not just those of a minority on the right or left.”
“Most voters want to elect the president by popular vote,” said Crampton. “In a national poll conducted last summer by the Pew Research Center, 63% of respondents, up from 55% the previous year, said they supported electing the president by popular vote.”
“To date, 15 states and the District of Columbia, containing a total of 195 electoral votes, have passed the legislation—that’s just 75 electoral votes shy of 270, which is the threshold that would activate the law,” said Crampton. “When we pass this bill in Florida with our 30 electoral votes, NPV will be three-fourths of the way to guaranteeing that the president is the winner of the National Popular Vote. It would honor the will of the people.”
Contact: Angie Wegner
angies@gmail.com
323-863-6014