Associated Press
OLYMPIA — The Washington Senate has passed a measure that removes the fine for Electoral College members who vote for someone other than candidates who win the state, but would have those electors automatically replaced by an alternate.
The chamber passed the bill on a 29-20 vote Tuesday, and it now heads to the House for consideration.
Voters in the U.S. do not directly vote for a president and vice president. Instead, they vote for a slate of electors who pledge to cast their votes for their party’s nominee through the Electoral College.
Four of the state’s 12 electors joined a longshot effort to deny Donald Trump the presidency in 2016 by casting their vote for someone other than their party’s nominee, Hillary Clinton. Three of those electors are currently challenging $1,000 fines for their actions. The state Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case last month.
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