BILL REQ. #: S-0941.1
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SENATE BILL 5628
_____________________________________________| State of Washington | 60th Legislature | 2007 Regular Session |
By Senators Oemig, Fairley, Pridemore and Kohl-WellesRead first time 01/25/2007. Referred to Committee on Government Operations & Elections.
AN ACT Relating to electing the president of the United States by
national popular vote; amending RCW 29A.56.320; adding a new section to
chapter 29A.56 RCW; and providing a contingent effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1 A new section is added to chapter 29A.56 RCW
to read as follows:
The governor may enter into an interstate agreement on behalf of
this state with any other state or states that have enacted an
interstate agreement that is substantially similar to the following:
INTERSTATE AGREEMENT FOR THE ELECTION OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES BY NATIONAL POPULAR VOTE
The contracting states solemnly agree:
ARTICLE I - Membership
Any state of the United States and the District of Columbia may
become a member of this agreement by enacting this agreement.
ARTICLE II - Right of the People in Member States to Vote
for President and Vice President
Each member state shall conduct a statewide popular election for
president and vice president of the United States.
ARTICLE III - Definitions
For the purposes of this agreement:
(a) "Chief election official" means the state official or body that
certifies the total number of popular votes for each presidential
slate.
(b) "Chief executive" means the governor of a state of the United
States or the mayor of the District of Columbia.
(c) "Elector slate" means a slate of candidates who have been
nominated in a state for the position of presidential elector in
association with a presidential slate.
(d) "Presidential elector" means an elector for president and vice
president of the United States.
(e) "Presidential elector certifying official" means the state
official or body that certifies the appointment of the state's
presidential electors.
(f) "Presidential slate" means a slate of two persons, the first of
whom has been nominated as a candidate for president of the United
States and the second of whom has been nominated as a candidate for
vice president of the United States. This includes any legal
successors to such persons, regardless of whether both names appear on
the ballot presented to the voter in a particular state.
(g) "State" means a state of the United States or the District of
Columbia.
(h) "Statewide popular election" means a general election in which
votes are cast for presidential slates by individual voters and counted
on a statewide basis.
ARTICLE IV - Manner of Appointing Presidential Electors
in Member States
(a) Before the presidential electors meet and vote on the date set
by federal law, the chief election official of each member state must
determine the number of votes cast for each presidential slate in each
state of the United States and in the District of Columbia. The votes
must be added together to produce a national popular vote total for
each presidential slate.
(b) The chief election official of each member state must designate
the presidential slate with the largest national popular vote total as
that national popular vote winner.
(c) The presidential elector certifying official of each member
state must certify the appointment in that official's own state of the
elector slate nominated in that state in association with the national
popular vote winner.
(d) At least six days before the day fixed by federal law for the
meeting and voting by the presidential electors, each member state must
make a final determination of the number of popular votes cast in the
state for each presidential slate and must communicate an official
statement of such determination within twenty-four hours to the chief
election official of each other member state.
(e) The chief election official of each member state must treat as
conclusive an official statement containing the number of popular votes
in a state for each presidential slate made by the day established by
federal law for making a state's final determination conclusive as to
the counting of electoral votes by congress.
(f) If there is a tie for the national popular vote winner, the
presidential elector certifying official of each member state must
certify the appointment of the elector slate nominated in association
with the presidential slate receiving the largest number of popular
votes within that official's own state.
(g) If the number of presidential electors nominated in a member
state in association with the national popular vote winner is less than
or greater than that state's number of electoral votes, the
presidential candidate on the presidential slate that has been
designated as the national popular vote winner may nominate the
presidential electors for that state and that state's presidential
elector certifying official shall certify the appointment of such
nominees.
(h) The chief election official of each member state must
immediately release to the public all vote counts or statements of
votes as they are determined or obtained.
(i) This article governs the appointment of presidential electors
in each member state in any year in which this agreement is, on July
20th, in effect in states cumulatively possessing a majority of the
electoral votes.
ARTICLE V - Other Provisions
(a) Any member state may withdraw from this agreement, except that
a withdrawal occurring six months or less before the end of a
president's term does not become effective until a president or vice
president has been qualified to serve the next term.
(b) The chief executive of each member state shall promptly notify
the chief executive of all other states of when this agreement has been
enacted and has taken effect in that official's state, when the state
has withdrawn from this agreement, and when this agreement takes effect
generally.
(c) This agreement terminates if the electoral college is
abolished.
Sec. 2 RCW 29A.56.320 and 2003 c 111 s 1425 are each amended to
read as follows:
In the year in which a presidential election is held, each major
political party and each minor political party or independent candidate
convention held under chapter 29A.20 RCW that nominates candidates for
president and vice president of the United States shall nominate
presidential electors for this state. The party or convention shall
file with the secretary of state a certificate signed by the presiding
officer of the convention at which the presidential electors were
chosen, listing the names and addresses of the presidential electors.
Each presidential elector shall execute and file with the secretary of
state a pledge that, as an elector, he or she will vote for the
candidates nominated by that party. The names of presidential electors
shall not appear on the ballots. ((The votes cast for candidates for
president and vice president of each political party shall be counted
for the candidates for presidential electors of that political party.))
Final appointment of presidential electors must be in accordance with
section 1 of this act, the interstate agreement for the election of the
president of the United States by national popular vote.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3 If any provision of this act or its
application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the
remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other
persons or circumstances is not affected.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4 This act takes effect when states
cumulatively possessing a majority of the electoral votes have enacted
this agreement in substantially the same form and the enactments by
these states have taken effect in each state.
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