Virginia will award its presidential electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote under a bill signed into law by Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) on Monday, marking a significant shift in how the state participates in presidential elections.
The measure enters Virginia into the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, an agreement among states to allocate their electoral votes to whichever candidate wins the most votes across all 50 states and the District of Columbia, rather than the winner within their own state.
Under the current system used by most states, including Virginia, electoral votes are awarded on a winner-take-all basis to the candidate who wins the state’s popular vote. The new law would change that — but only if enough states join the compact.
The agreement takes effect once participating states collectively control at least 270 electoral votes, the number needed to win the presidency. Until that threshold is reached,
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