Presidential elector system change in N.C. nearing passage

RALEIGH (AP) — North Carolina is one step closer to eliminating its winner-take-all system for presidential electoral votes.

A House election law committee today approved a measure along party lines that would create a more proportional method in distributing the state's 15 electoral votes.

A presidential ticket would earn one elector for winning the majority of the vote in one of the state's congressional districts, while two additional at-large electors would be chosen based on the statewide vote total.

The bill already has passed the Senate and now goes to the House floor. Governor Easley, a Democrat, would be asked to sign the bill into law.

The Republican presidential candidate has carried the popular vote every election since 1980.

Democrats support the change because they say it would encourage presidential nominees to campaign in North Carolina. Because its electoral votes would be in play, GOP speakers argue it would actually make the state less relevant during the campaign.