Justices Rule States Can Bind Presidential Electors’ Votes

WASHINGTON — In a decision flavored with references to “Hamilton” and “Veep,” the Supreme Court ruled unanimously Monday that states can require presidential electors to back their states’ popular vote winner in the Electoral College. The ruling, in cases in Washington state and Colorado just under four months before the 2020 election, leaves in place laws in 32 states and the District of Columbia that bind electors to vote for the popular-vote winner, as electors almost always do anyway. So-called faithless electors have not been critical to the outcome of a presidential election, but that could change in a race decided by just a few electoral votes.