BAKERSFIELD, Calif. —

On Monday, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that states can require presidential electors to back their states’ popular vote winner in the Electoral College.

In a decision peppered with references to the Broadway show Hamilton and TV show Veep — justices decided that so-called faithless electors had no ground for reversing a statewide popular vote.

On this 23ABC Podcast, Veronica Morley looks into the Supreme Court's recent decision on the Electoral College and its impact on the upcoming election.

She speaks with Bakersfield College's Political Science Professor Richard "Allen" Bolar on what this means for the Electoral College and for voters.

The ruling, just under four months before the 2020 election, leaves in place laws in 32 states and the District of Columbia that bind electors to vote for the popular-vote winner, and electors almost always do so anyway.

The Supreme Court’s decision Monday only upholds laws in states that allow the state to remove or punish electors who changed their votes. In states without such penalties, electors remain free to change their votes.