The Supreme Court is taking up an unusual voting issue that could have important consequences for the 2020 presidential election in an era of intense …
The Supreme Court is taking up an unusual voting issue that could have important consequences for the 2020 presidential election in an era of intense political polarization.
Wednesday is the court’s final day of arguments by telephone in May, with livestreamed audio, and deals with whether presidential electors are bound to support popular-vote winners in their states or can opt for someone else. Arguments had been scheduled for the courtroom in April but were postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
So-called faithless electors have not been critical to the outcome of a presidential election, but that could change in a contest with a razor-thin margin.
Thirty-two states and the District of Columbia require presidential electors to vote for the popular-vote winner, and electors almost always do so anyway. Under the Constitution, the country elects the president indirectly, with voters choosing people who actually cast an Electoral College ballot for president.
