During an interview with erstwhile libertarian presidential candidate Austin Petersen, independent candidate and former CIA agent Evan McMullin explained his platform very candidly: Stop both major party candidates from reaching 270 electoral votes, forcing the decision onto the House of Representatives, or simply keep Trump from winning.
“We’re not trying to win 270 votes…what we’re trying to do is earn enough electoral votes to block Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump if the race between both of them is so close that we are able to do that by running one or two states. So, that’s the idea, but if not that, then we will be happy to have prevented someone who I believe is a true authoritarian from taking power in the United States, and that’s Donald Trump.”
Some may perceive this as a straight-up “get Hillary elected” strategy, but McMullin may be banking on a very particular rule that would give him a chance at being considered by the House of Representatives.
According to the National Archives and Records Administration (emphasis added):
“If no candidate receives a majority of Electoral votes, the House of Representatives elects the President from the three Presidential candidates who received the most Electoral votes. Each state delegation has one vote.”
If McMullin is the only other candidate to take a state, thereby gaining its electoral votes, he would be included in the House’s decision making process, per the rules. This would give him a chance, albeit extremely unlikely, at being chosen by the House to serve as President of the United States.
Some might scoff at the idea that McMullin could possibly win any state; however, in the most recent polls out of Utah, the independent candidate is surging, consistently landing within five points of Donald Trump. One poll from Emerson even had McMullin leading by four points.
Here are some things to remember. Utah sent a strong anti-Trump message during the Republican primary, giving 69.2% of their vote to Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), and a meager 14% to the GOP nominee.
According to a 2015 Gallup survey, Utah is 59% Mormon, which is part of the reason Mitt Romney did so well in 2012, garnering 72.8% of the state’s vote. McMullin’s Mormon faith is likely propelling him forward in the beehive state. His headquarters are even based in Salt Lake City, the state’s capital.
Bloomberg corroborates the idea that Utah’s heavily Mormon population is key in McMullin’s support:
“In no small part, support for McMullin in Utah and a handful of other western states stems from his Mormon faith, but many members of the Church of Latter Day Saints also say he’s the only candidate on the ballot who shares their political vision.”
Whether or not McMullin’s motive is truly to try to win the presidency or just foil Trump’s presidential bid, his play for Utah is certainly making things difficult for the business mogul in a state that should be a shoo-in for the Republican nominee.