<HTML><BODY STYLE="font:10pt verdana; border:none;"><DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Hooray! Thanks to Tom for posting this. I've been thinking for some time now of filing a citizens' initiative to require the state to proportionally distribute our electoral votes. <STRONG><U>NO</U></STRONG> Presidential candidates ever campaign here. Why? Because the Democrats have written us off, and the GOP, consequently, takes us for granted. This isn't good any way you look at it. Idaho is forgotten in the federal scheme of things -- and considering the proportion of our land and water that is controlled by the federal government, I can't help but think that we might be better served (especially in these tight 50.8% to 49.2% elections) if we split our electoral votes. Presidential candidates visit Maine and Nebraska; they don't visit Idaho Falls, Lewiston, or Boise.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>We should act now to make our Presidential elections 50-state affairs, not just whirlwind tours of 15 or 16 battleground states. A change in electoral vote distribution might also give third-party candidates a real look-in. We might change the perception that voting Green, or Libertarian, or Reform, or even Monty Python's Silly Party was simply tossing away one's vote. Montana, Wyoming, North and South Dakota -- are you listening? Let's force DC to focus some attention on the West. Considerate attention -- not just pulling on a pair of cowboy boots and waving your Stetson at us from the Oval Office.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Joan Opyr/Auntie Establishment</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt Arial">From today's (February 4, 2005) Spokesman Review.<BR><BR>Suddenly presidential elections are looking a little "bluer" in Idaho.<BR><BR>-----------------------------------------------------------------------<BR><BR>Plan to divide electoral votes progresses<BR><BR>House panel agrees to introduce measure<BR><BR>By Betsy Z. Russell Staff writer<BR>February 4, 2005<BR><BR>BOISE - Maine, like Idaho, has only four electoral votes - but President<BR>Bush went there 13 times during the campaign. Bush still hasn't come to<BR>Idaho.<BR><BR>The difference? According to House Minority Leader Wendy Jaquet, D-Ketchum,<BR>it's because Maine divides its electoral votes by congressional district,<BR>and Bush wanted to make sure its northern district went his way.<BR><BR>With a big, colorful map, historical tidbits and lots of examples, Jaquet on<BR>Thursday persuaded the House State Affairs Committee to introduce her bill<BR>to divide Idaho's electoral votes by congressional district, just like Maine<BR>and Nebraska.<BR><BR>"Our votes shouldn't be taken for granted," Jaquet told the committee.<BR><BR>Currently, Idaho, like most states, uses a winner-takes-all system that<BR>gives all of the state's electoral votes to the presidential candidate who<BR>gets the most votes. Jaquet said that convinces some voters that their votes<BR>just won't count.<BR><BR>Though Jaquet's bill was introduced on a unanimous vote, the mostly<BR>Republican committee didn't commit to supporting the bill, just to giving it<BR>a full hearing.<BR><BR>"I have a great deal of respect for the founding fathers, and I'm very<BR>reluctant to make changes to what they've done - but I am interested in<BR>hearing the arguments," said Rep. Phil Hart, R-Athol. <BR><BR><BR>Jaquet said, "People in Idaho do have a strong desire to make their votes<BR>count." The possibility that electoral votes could split, she said, "would<BR>encourage people to get out and vote for a candidate who would be an<BR>underdog in the MRSN - the Most Republican State in the Nation. That would<BR>increase our turnout, and that's good for democracy."<BR><BR>Jaquet said Idaho also has an interest in getting presidential candidates to<BR>address the state's and the region's issues. "We have these huge federal<BR>issues with regard to water, public lands, fish," she said. But presidential<BR>candidates now tend to focus only on swing states, and that hasn't included<BR>Idaho.<BR><BR>"John Kerry came here because he has a house here. He didn't come to talk to<BR>the people of Idaho," Jaquet said. <BR><BR>Jaquet said when the bill has its public hearing, a constitutional scholar<BR>from Idaho State University will help lawmakers understand the issue She<BR>said that scholar, David Adler, helped persuade her to revise her bill from<BR>her original idea, which would have divided all four of Idaho's electoral<BR>votes proportionally to match the vote in the election<BR><BR>Instead, her bill now calls for two of the state's electoral votes - the two<BR>Idaho gets for its two senators - to be decided based on the statewide<BR>outcome, while the other two would be determined by congressional district.<BR>Idaho has two congressional districts; District 1 takes in North Idaho and<BR>stretches down to parts of Boise, while District 2 runs from Boise to<BR>eastern Idaho.<BR><BR>That's the same system Maine and Nebraska already use.<BR><BR>Jaquet said backers of the winner-take-all system who say it gives Idaho<BR>more clout are mistaken. <BR><BR>"What clout? Let's be realistic," she said. "They're not hearing from our<BR>people."<BR></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML><br clear=all><hr>Get more from the Web. FREE MSN Explorer download : <a href='http://explorer.msn.com'>http://explorer.msn.com</a><br></p>