The Massachusetts House of Representatives gave preliminary approval today to a bill that could someday rid the state of the Electoral College system and put presidential elections more directly in the hands of voters.

If the measure is approved by the Legislature and signed by the governor, the state would become the fifth state to join a movement toward switching to a popular vote.

Under the current system, it’s possible for a candidate to win the presidency without winning the popular vote. That happened three times in the 19th century, and it happened in 2000, when Al Gore lost, despite garnering more votes than George Bush.

Proponents of the change say that the current system is confusing and causes candidates to focus on a handful of battleground states. Critics say the change could result in quirky situations in which a state like Massachusetts, typically a Democratic stronghold, would have to pledge its votes to the Republican candidate.

The states have the power under the US Consitution to allocate their electoral votes. Under the proposed bill, all of the state’s electoral votes would be awarded to the candidate who receives the most popular vote nationally.

Slowly but slowly, people are working on ridding the political process of this outdated piece of trash.  Everyone should work hard to pass a similar plan in their state and then the election of a president would truly be in the hands of the people.