Iowa Republicans oppose national popular vote plan

DES MOINES (AP) ? Gov. Terry Branstad said Tuesday he opposes a plan to replace the electoral college with a national popular vote because it would rob small states like Iowa of their influence in presidential politics.

Under the electoral college system, the candidate who wins a majority of votes in a particular state receives all of that state?s electoral votes, which are equal to the number of members it has in Congress. Opponents don?t like it because the system makes it possible to win the popular vote nationally, but lose the election in the electoral college. Supporters say the electoral college system ensures elections can?t be won just by carrying a couple of populous states, such as California and Texas.

Branstad, a Republican, said the proposal needs to be taken seriously because popular vote advocates are spending big money to promote it.

?Yes, we?re taking it seriously,? he said. ?They are spending all kinds of money on TV right now making a direct appeal to people on this with a lot of misleading ads.?

Iowa Republican Party Chairman Matt Strawn said its state committee met Monday night and voted against the proposal. Republican leaders elsewhere also are opposing it, he said.

?In my conversations with my colleagues across the country, they are not only running TV ads and newspaper ads in places like Iowa, they are hiring lobbyists in statehouses across the country,? he said.

Patrick Rosenstiel, a spokesman for the National Popular Vote Initiative, rejected the idea that a national popular vote would hurt small states. He said under the current system, candidates focus primarily on states with a lot of electoral college votes, such as California.

?I actually dispute the governor?s claim that this would rob small states of their influence,? Rosenstiel said. ?He?s defending a system that makes smaller states irrelevant.?

Branstad said a national popular vote would shift influence toward major metropolitan areas and require candidates to raise more money for television advertising. He said 31 smaller states, including Iowa, would lose under the proposal.

?The national popular vote initiative will do nothing but shift candidates? focus from battleground states like lowa to mega-population centers,? he said. ?The national popular vote will do nothing but allow candidates to look past smaller populated states and focus instead on cities with major media outlets.?

The popular vote effort has been approved in eight states and the District of Columbia.

Strawn said the GOP?s Central Committee is continuing to focus on Jan. 3 as the date for the state?s caucuses, which historically kick off the presidential nominating season. Iowa political leaders, however, have felt pushed by Nevada?s decision to move that state?s caucuses to mid-January.

Branstad urged Nevada officials to move their caucuses back a few days to avoid Iowa having to move its contest into the holidays.

?That?s not too much to ask,? Branstad said. ?They would still be third in this process. Most Iowans don?t want to see the caucuses held during the holidays.?