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The number one goal of the Founders was to avoid tyranny of the majority. They were well-read students of political history and philosophy. Plato wrote that “tyranny naturally arises out of democracy.” Edmund Burke warned that in a democracy, the majority can oppress the minority. Jefferson observed that power, once acquired, is often abused. And John Adams explained that only by balancing powers against each other can freedom be preserved. These ideas shaped the constitutional system they designed.

The American Left, in sharp contrast, thinks only of majority rule. They have contempt for the prudence found in the Founders’ Constitution, with its checks and balances meant to curb majority tyranny. They find no wisdom in Madison’s thoughts on our “compound republic” (Federalist 51). And in seeking a nationalized popular vote for president, they threaten to tear down the constitutional protections of federalism, minority rights, regional diversity, our two-party system, and national unity in a nation already too divided.

In 2006, wealthy Californians launched a cynical attempt to remove one of the load-bearing pillars of our Constitution—the Electoral College—by way of a National Popular Vote interstate compact. They aim to convince state legislatures to enact their compact until states representing 270 Electoral College votes sign on—270 being the number needed to elect a president. If ever enacted, it would propel America immediately into the kind of constitutional crisis unknown since the Civil War. Seventeen “blue” states have already enacted the compact for a total of 209 Electoral votes. Last week the Virginia House and Senate each passed a NPV bill. A final bill will make its way to Gov. Spanberger for her signature. Will she have the courage and good sense to reject the radical risks this unconstitutional compact contains?

Here is a summary of the radical risks that Gov. Spanberger must avoid:

• NPV denies a republican form of government to the citizens of NPV states. The NPV compact requires that state governments direct their presidential electors to ignore the majority or plurality vote of their own state’s voters and vote for whomever wins the national popular vote. Since no governmental agency tallies the presidential votes of our 50 states, it would seem this task is left to CNN or Fox News to calculate. Either that or allow a federal takeover of our elections.
• NPV violates the Compact Clause of the US Constitution. Article I requires that state compacts receive a positive vote by Congress. This prevents a handful of states from creating a league within the nation contrary to the interests of all the states and contrary to the Constitution’s design. NPV proponents have never presented their scheme to Congress for a vote, as they would lose such a vote.
• NPV is deeply partisan. In every one of the 17 states that has enacted the NPV compact, the House, Senate and Governorship were held by the same party—the Democratic party—at the time of enactment.
• NPV will destroy the American two-party system. The political systems of other republics suffer from the dangerous instability of multi-party politics. The average EU nation has nine parties! The prime ministers of 25 EU nations, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, India, and Israel are all elected by multi-party coalitions Parliamentary coalitions. In the vast majority the current Prime Minister serves with less than 40% of the vote. The only American president with less than 40% of the popular vote was Abraham Lincoln with 39.8%.
• NPV will swiftly multiply U.S. political parties. An NPV system will mean that states no longer matter—only large urban areas. Candidates will only campaign in Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Miami, Seattle, and a few other major cities. Without needing to win in many states large and small, several new parties will spring up, many financed by billionaires who may bankroll their own presidential campaigns. Primaries like those in tiny New Hampshire and rural Iowa will be cast aside as relics of the past. And for those who complain about Washington gridlock today, just wait until we have eight or more parties holding seats in the U.S. Congress.
• NPV will swiftly divide Americans and our states—urban vs. rural. There are more people in Los Angeles County than in each of 41 states, including Virginia. New York City has more people than in each of 39 states. In 2016, Hillary Clinton won only 487 counties and 20 states, while Trump won 2,626 counties and 30 states. The NPV compact is a big-city power grab, an attempt to ensure that major metro areas decide every U.S. presidential election—forever.
• The NPV compact is contrary to the sacred promise of the Virginia oath of office. Finally, members of the Virginia legislature and the Governor affirm this oath of office:  "I do solemnly swear I will support the Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Virginia… so help me God."   The NPV compact is an unconstitutional state compact, and an illicit attempt to change the Constitution without a constitutional amendment. Moreover, the Commonwealth’s constitution provides that only Virginia residents are entitled to vote for Virginia’s elected officials. Virginia presidential electors are state officials elected by each of our state’s political parties. Yet the NPV compact would mandate ignoring the will of Virginia’s voters in favor of the voters of other states, such as California, in determining for whom Virginia’s 13 presidential electors will cast their votes. 

Will Gov. Spanberger live up to her oath of office and defend both Constitutions?