Pennsylvania's 'Democrat-screwing' 2012 'genius plan'

The GOP-dominated Keystone State government is gunning to change the rules on how it divvies up electoral votes — and it could cost Obama the election

President Obama's re-election could be in serious peril if Pennsylvania approves a plan to divvy up its electoral votes by congressional district instead of the current winner-take-all system
(Image credit: CC BY: The White House)

For the first time in years, Pennsylvania has a Republican governor as well as solid GOP majorities in both houses of the state legislature. State GOP leaders are using that power trifecta to push what Slate's David Weigel calls a "bold Democrat-screwing electoral plan" that could well cost President Obama next year's election. The GOP's proposal would turn the key swing state from a winner-take-all electoral college prize to a district-by-district red-blue puzzle — and the national implications are enormous. Here's how it works:

How exactly does the electoral college system work?

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