Friday, May 5, 2023 | 2 a.m.
View more of the Sun's opinion section
If the Nevada Constitution is amended to bring the state into the National Popular Vote Compact, Nevada’s influence in national politics will grow.
Candidates will still campaign in Nevada because in the new system, every vote will be counted. In a close election, a few votes in Nevada could swing the election either way. Every state would be important. Today, Republican national office candidates do not campaign in California, New York and other blue states. With the new system, all candidates would campaign in all states, red or blue, and get more votes.
The result of such an election would show the will of the American people. It would not give votes in Wyoming more weight than those cast in California. Neither would votes in Delaware (a blue state) have more weight than votes in Florida or Texas (both red).
Because of the Electoral College, the votes of people who live in large states are worth two-thirds of the votes of people who live in small states like Wyoming. Black people were considered three-fifths of a man according to the Electoral College. Now, everybody who lives in large states is considered two-thirds human compared with those in smaller states, courtesy of the Electoral College.
The present system was crafted to appease the slave-owning states. It was conceived by racists. There is no room for racism in our elections. If America wants to become a true democracy, the one man, one vote system must be adopted by most states, including Nevada.
