Mass. adopts Electoral College bill

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BOSTON, July 28 (UPI) -- The Massachusetts Legislature has approved a law aimed at ensuring the winner of the popular vote becomes U.S. president.

If Gov. Deval Patrick signs the bill, which was approved by the state Senate Tuesday, all 12 of the Massachusetts electoral votes will go to the candidate winning the most votes nationwide, The Boston Globe reported. But the law would not take effect until enough states have adopted it to guarantee an Electoral College majority, 270 votes, to the winner.

Illinois, New Jersey, Hawaii, Maryland, and Washington have similar laws.

Under the current system, in most states the candidate that wins the most votes there gets all that state's electoral votes, equal to the number of House representatives plus the two U.S. senators. The system gives small states disproportionate clout and in recent times has led candidates to focus on a few battleground states, ignoring those, like Massachusetts, that tilt strongly to one party.

In 2000, George W. Bush became the fourth person to capture the presidency with a minority of the popular vote.