{"id":2591228,"date":"2026-04-15T16:23:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T20:23:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/spanberger-signs-bill-to-tie-virginias-electoral-votes-to-california\/"},"modified":"2026-04-15T16:25:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-15T20:25:10","slug":"spanberger-signs-bill-to-tie-virginias-electoral-votes-to-california","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/spanberger-signs-bill-to-tie-virginias-electoral-votes-to-california\/","title":{"rendered":"Spanberger Signs Bill To Tie Virginia&#8217;s Electoral Votes To California"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fspanberger-signs-bill-to-tie-virginias-electoral-votes-to-california%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2591228&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Federalist reports that Democratic Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger pledged to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC), which would tie Virginia\u2019s electoral votes to the winner of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/6-steps-the-democrats-will-take-to-fundamentally-alter-america-and-ensure-their-permanent-power\/\" title=\"6 Steps The Democrats Will Take To Fundamentally Alter America And Ensure Their Permanent Power\">national popular vote<\/a> (perhaps California or another densely populated state) even if Virginians vote differently. The article explains that the NPVIC would guarantee the presidency to the candidate who wins the national popular vote across all 50 states and the District of Columbia, but it has not yet taken effect as it needs enough states to reach 270 electoral votes.<\/p>\n<p>As of now, 18 states and Washington, D.C. are part of the compact. If more states join, Virginia would delegates its electoral votes to the national outcome rather than the state\u2019s own vote. The piece notes that under current practice,48 states (excluding Maine and Nebraska,which use a district method) award all their electoral votes to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nebraska-republicans-push-for-big-2024-electoral-change-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Nebraska Republicans push for big 2024 electoral change - Washington Examiner\">statewide popular vote<\/a>,a system designed to require broad geographic support rather than victory in a few large states.<\/p>\n<p>The article surveys historical arguments, citing James Madison and Alexander Hamilton on protecting smaller states and preventing the tyranny of the majority. It suggests the NPVC could undermine those protections and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >leave \u201cflyover\u201d states politically sidelined<\/a>, relying instead on outcomes driven by densely populated areas. It also comments on a political dynamic: some Democrats may support the pact because the electoral College reduces their ability to campaign across rural areas.<\/p>\n<p>The piece is written by Brianna lyman, an elections correspondent for The Federalist.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=gYtyZeg6PSU\">  WTKR News 3\/Youtube <\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/15\/spanberger-signs-bill-to-tie-virginias-electoral-votes-to-california\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Spanberger%20Signs%20Bill%20To%20Tie%20Virginia%E2%80%99s%20Electoral%20Votes%20To%20California&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/15\/spanberger-signs-bill-to-tie-virginias-electoral-votes-to-california\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Spanberger%20Signs%20Bill%20To%20Tie%20Virginia%E2%80%99s%20Electoral%20Votes%20To%20California&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/15\/spanberger-signs-bill-to-tie-virginias-electoral-votes-to-california\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/15\/spanberger-signs-bill-to-tie-virginias-electoral-votes-to-california\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Spanberger%20Signs%20Bill%20To%20Tie%20Virginia%E2%80%99s%20Electoral%20Votes%20To%20California&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/15\/spanberger-signs-bill-to-tie-virginias-electoral-votes-to-california\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>Democrat Gov. Abigail Spanberger committed Virginia to the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact on Monday, which would tie Virginia&rsquo;s Electoral College votes to those of California or another densely populated state even <em>if<\/em> Virginians vote the opposite way.<\/p>\n<p>The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalpopularvote.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">would<\/a> &ldquo;guarantee the Presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.&rdquo; There are now 18 states (and Washington, D.C.) signed on to the compact, which is not yet in effect since it has yet to meet the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/poll-election-shifting-percentage-of-voters-admit-to-illegal-voting-in-2020\/\" title=\"Survey: Significant Percentage of ...rs Confess to Illegal Voting in 2020 Election\">270 electoral vote threshold<\/a>. But if a few more states join the compact, Virginia (like every other state in the compact) would no longer award its Electoral College votes based on how Virginians vote. Instead, states would award their electoral votes to whichever candidate wins the national popular vote, regardless of how the individual state votes.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-1813749568\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Currently, 48 states (not including Maine and Nebraska) allocate all of their electoral votes to the candidate who wins the popular vote <em>within the state<\/em>, which, of course, is not always the same candidate who wins the popular vote nationally. The system was designed to ensure that candidates could not win on regional density alone, but rather would need a geographic balance. This mechanism forces candidates to take into consideration the varying interests, economies, and industries of <em>all<\/em> states, not just a few larger states.<\/p>\n<p>But the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact would effectively allow a handful of densely populated states, like California and New York, to dictate the outcome of the election despite both states having vastly different interests from states like Idaho, Nebraska, or Oklahoma.<\/p>\n<p>The founders understood that smaller states would need robust protections of their access to political representation, which is why the founders came up with the system in the first place. Such a system was designed to prevent the &ldquo;tyranny of the majority,&rdquo; as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.heritage.org\/conservatism\/commentary\/preventing-the-tyranny-the-majority\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Madison<\/a> warned. Alexander Hamilton defended the Electoral College in <a href=\"https:\/\/avalon.law.yale.edu\/18th_century\/fed68.asp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Federalist 68<\/a>, arguing such a process was a safeguard against &ldquo;cabal, intrigue, and corruption.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>James Madison warned in <a href=\"https:\/\/avalon.law.yale.edu\/18th_century\/fed10.asp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Federalist No. 10<\/a> that under a &ldquo;popular government,&rdquo; a majority faction could &ldquo;sacrifice to its ruling passion or interest both the public good and the rights of other citizens.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In fact, as The Federalist&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/10\/09\/in-calling-for-axing-the-electoral-college-tim-walz-tells-swing-state-voters-to-get-lost\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/a> pointed out in these pages, the founders would likely have declined to ratify the Constitution itself in the absence of &ldquo;such protections for smaller states.&rdquo; But the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact undermines such protections and would leave so-called &ldquo;flyover states&rdquo; politically irrelevant and at the mercy of fellow citizens who may not have the same interests or needs.<\/p>\n<p>As Fleetwood noted, though, the reason Democrats are willing to commit their constituents to such a pact is that the Electoral College &ldquo;deprives [Democrats] of the unbridled power to silence all opposition. There&rsquo;s no need to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/walz-dismisses-swing-state-voters-by-opposing-electoral-college\/\" title=\"Walz Dismisses Swing State ...rs By Opposing ...\">waste time campaigning<\/a> to the rubes in &lsquo;flyover country&rsquo; if they can juice turnout in Democrat-heavy cities and states instead.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Brianna Lyman is an elections correspondent at The Federalist. Brianna graduated from Fordham University with a degree in International Political Economy. Her work has been featured on Newsmax, Fox News, Fox Business and RealClearPolitics. Follow Brianna on X: @briannalyman2<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Brianna Lyman<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/briannalyman2\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@briannalyman2<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/briannalyman\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/abigail-spanberger\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Abigail Spanberger<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/alexander-hamilton\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Alexander Hamilton<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/election-security\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">election security<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/elections\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Elections<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/electoral-college\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Electoral College<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/james-madison\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">James Madison<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/national-popular-vote-interstate-compact\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">National Popular Vote Interstate Compact<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/popular-vote\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">popular vote<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/virginia\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Virginia<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>VA joins National Popular Vote Compact, tying EVs to CA<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":74,"featured_media":2591229,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Screenshot-2026-04-15-at-2.40.17-PM-scaled-e1776278518880-1024x577.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546,33651],"tags":[4045,77843,32249,5468],"class_list":["post-2591228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","category-the-western-journal","tag-california","tag-electoralvotes","tag-spanberger","tag-virginia"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Screenshot-2026-04-15-at-2.40.17-PM-scaled-e1776278518880-1024x577.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2591228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/74"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2591228"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2591228\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2591232,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2591228\/revisions\/2591232"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2591229"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2591228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2591228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2591228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}