States can require Electoral College voters to back the victor of their state’s popular vote, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Monday, in a major dispute that could have an impact on November’s presidential contest.
Two cases were brought by Electoral College voters in Washington state and Colorado who refused to back Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016, despite her wins in those states.
Like most states, Washington and Colorado have laws that require electors to vote for their pledged candidate. The electors argued that the enforcement of those laws was unconstitutional.
BREAKING: The Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that state “faithless elector” laws — which allow states to remove or fine Electoral College delegates who don't vote for the presidential candidate they were pledged to support — are constitutional.
— NPR (@NPR) July 6, 2020
Breaking: Supreme Court unanimously holds that states can require presidential electors to vote the way the state says (no faithless electors). https://t.co/FQX1JDSlsp This is great news. A contrary decision would have been a disaster: https://t.co/pZfUJzIprY
— Rick Hasen (@rickhasen) July 6, 2020