.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........

SANTA FE — The state House late Friday passed a bill that would sign New Mexico on to a compact pledging the state’s electoral votes to whichever candidate wins the national popular vote.

The proposal, House Bill 55, is now on its way to the Senate.

The interstate agreement wouldn’t take effect until enough states have signed on to form a majority of votes in the Electoral College, guaranteeing that the winner of the national vote takes the White House.

The goal would be to diminish the influence of the winner-take-all system that dominates the Electoral College, in which candidates tend to focus on a dozen or so battleground states that could be won by either party, supporters say.

The measure, sponsored by five Democrats, passed 41-27.

ADVERTISEMENTSkip

................................................................