Imagine a presidential election without battleground states. No continuous reporting about how older white voters, suburban women, men without college degrees and union members from three “blue wall” states could swing the election.
Keep imagining a president elected by the popular vote after the mysterious and increasingly troublesome Electoral College is eliminated — an election where the presidential candidates would campaign nationwide, not just in seven battleground states needed to reach the crucial 270 electoral votes.
Never again would a presidential candidate lose the election but win the popular vote — an Electoral College quirk that occurred in 2000 and 2016 and could easily happen in November.
Think about increased voter participation for the first presidential election with 50 battleground states. A new political chapter begins when citizens directly cast their ballot for the next president with no “wasted votes” from Republican voters in Democrat majority states and vice versa — an Electoral College curse.
Americans have thought about and imagined all the above, confirmed by a recent Pew Research Center survey. Pew found 63 percent of Americans would rather elect the president through a national popular vote. It is very hard to find anything that 63 percent of Americans agree on.
As usual, a schism exists between parties. Among Democrats, 80 percent favor a popular vote compared to only 46 percent of Republicans.
Given the overwhelming support for a presidential popular vote, “No battleground states by 2028!” could become a rallying cry that resonates on Capitol........