Massachusetts to Abandon Electoral College

“The Massachusetts Legislature has approved a new law intended to bypass the Electoral College system,” says The Boston Globe. The state’s electoral votes would follow the national popular vote. “The bill, which passed on a 28-to-9 vote, now heads to Democratic Governor Deval Patrick’s desk. The governor has said in the past that he supports the bill, said his spokeswoman Kim Haberlin. … The current Electoral College system is confusing and causes presidential candidates to focus unduly on a handful of battleground states, supporters say. They also say that the popular vote winner has lost in four of the nation’s 56 elections.”