FairVote.org | Pennsylvanians oppose congressional district system

Pennsylvanians oppose congressional district system - but also status quo

by Katie P. Kelly, Rob Richie // Published September 29, 2011

Poll numbers released this week by Quinnipiac University indicate that Pennsylvania voters prefer the state’s current winner-take-all rules for allocating Electoral College votes over Senate majority leader Dominic Pileggi’s proposal to allocate electoral votes by congressional district by a margin of 52% to 40% . That finding is important as the legislature heads into hearings on the proposal next Tuesday.

But some journalists have wrongly suggested that the public endorses the current system. The reality is that the pollsters didn’t ask the obvious question: would you instead support Pennsylvania moving the nation toward a national popular vote for president, guaranteeing that the candidate with the most votes nationwide wins?

We know what Pennsylvania voters would say. This poll was asked in a different form in Pennsylvania earlier this year and, in direct comparison, in several other states in recent years. Indeed, it’s not even close.

An April 2011 poll by Dr. Terry Madonna from Franklin and Marshall University revealed that 2 out 3 Pennsylvanians believe the president should be the candidate who “gets the most votes in all 50 states” and that a clear majority of PA residents from all political parties and all regions of the state favor this approach. Here is a comparison of the polls.

2011 Pennsylvania Polling Numbers


	% Favor Current System	% Favor Congressional Districts	% Favor NPV	Don't Know
Quinnapiac Poll, Sept. 2011	52	40	n/a	7
Franklin and Marshall Poll, April 2011	31	n/a	64	5

Voters in several other states have been asked directly to compare all three methods: allocating electoral votes by congressional district, allocating electoral votes by winner-take-all statewide or guaranteeing victory for the national popular vote. You can see the exact questions and demographic breakdowns at the National Popular Vote site, but here’s a summary:

POLL DATE	STATE
May 2009	Idaho	PREFER NPV	PREFER CURRENT	PREFER DISTRICT
	Overall	71%	13%	16%
	Republican	70%	18%	12%
	Democrat	77%	12%	11%
	Other	66%	17%	16%
January 2009	Maine	PREFER NPV	PREFER CURRENT	PREFER DISTRICT
	Overall	71%	8%	21%
	Republican	65%	7%	27%
	Democrat	77%	8%	15%
	Other	68%	11%	22%
May 2010	Massachusetts	PREFER NPV	PREFER CURRENT	PREFER DISTRICT
	Overall	68%	16%	16%
	Republican	49%	23%	28%
	Democrat	80%	12%	8%
	Other	65%	16%	19%
January 2011	Nebraska	PREFER NPV	PREFER CURRENT	PREFER DISTRICT
	Overall	57%	16%	27%
	Republican	53%	20%	27%
	Democrat	65%	9%	26%
	Other	51%	17%	32%
May 2009	Oklahoma	PREFER NPV	PREFER CURRENT	PREFER DISTRICT
	Overall	77%	10%	13%
	Republican	76%	12%	12%
	Democrat	80%	6%	15%
	Other	70%	17%	13%
May 2009	Washington	PREFER NPV	PREFER CURRENT	PREFER DISTRICT
	Overall	73%	11%	16%
	Republican	61%	17%	22%
	Democrat	82%	8%	10%
	Other	72%	11%	18%

Not only does state after state show a similar finding, but it’s strong across the spectrum. Idaho, for example, is a Republican stronghold, in which John McCain defeated Barack Obama by 62% to 36% in 2008. Yet, support for a national popular vote remains consistent across party lines. Findings are generally similar where this question has been asked, and we're sure it would be about the same in Pennsylvania, despite its recent (and perhaps fleeting) history as a swing state.

So let’s be clear. The congressional district allocation system is unpopular in Pennsylvania, but so is the status quo. We urge Pennsylvania lawmakers to join with other states to guarantee what the public really wants: a national popular vote for president, guaranteeing election of the candidate who wins the most votes in all 50 states and District of Columbia.