David S. Broder is right ["A Dubious Electoral Idea," op-ed, April 5]: There are serious questions to consider before changing the 18th-century electoral college system used to elect our president. But these concerns are far outweighed by the benefits of the National Popular Vote Plan, which would guarantee that the candidate who gets the most votes wins, that each vote counts the same and that each vote is counted for the candidate for whom it is cast. None of this is true under the current system.
Today, two-thirds of the states are ignored by the presidential campaigns of both parties because those states are considered solidly blue or red. National Popular Vote would ensure that voters in all 50 states are seen as important.
The popular vote is not foreign to Americans -- it's the way we choose our county sheriffs, state legislators, governors, members of Congress and all other elected officials. Because Congress has refused to act, it is time to urge our state legislators to adopt a plan that ensures the basic principles of democracy contained in National Popular Vote.
BIRCH BAYH
Chevy Chase
The writer, a Democrat, represented Indiana in the U.S. Senate from 1963 to 1981.
