LAS CRUCES, N.M. -- Many states are banning together to ensure presidential candidates who get the most popular votes win the presidency -- New Mexico is one of them.

The national popular vote measure has passed the House by a 41-27 vote on Friday.

It didn't affect the latest presidential election, but in 2000, President George W. Bush won the presidency without a majority of the popular votes nationwide. This legislation hopes to change that, one state at a time.

House Bill 383 could take New Mexico's five electoral votes and give them to the candidate who has the most popular votes nationwide.

“It lets New Mexico determine its electoral votes based on how the rest of the country votes rather than on the way that it votes itself,” said Jose Z. Garcia, NMSU associate government professor.

Many believe that will mean New Mexico votes won’t matter.

“If you have the idea that your vote isn't going to matter, then why go (to vote)? I think a lot of people will have that kind of idea,” said Kaiya Ahrens of South Las Cruces.

New Mexico would have to wait until after the election to decide where the five electoral votes would go.

“It's kind of disheartening because you have this whole ‘my voice could be heard’ idea but then it's really not,” Ahrens said.

But Garcia, at New Mexico State University, said it doesn't necessarily mean New Mexico's votes would go unnoticed. They'd still be part of the popular vote, but he said there might be another way to divide the electoral votes.

“The five electoral votes would be split between the way in which people fill up the different districts in the state,” Garcia said.

It could mean that fewer presidential candidates would visit and place their campaign dollars in the state.

“Our electoral college votes, the ones that count, are going to be determined how the rest of the country votes; it seems to me like it is a bad idea,” Garcia said.

The bill has passed in Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland and New Jersey. Two-hundred and seventy electoral votes are needed to win the presidency, and this legislation nationwide if the enough states get on board to make this idea work.