New effort launches to democratically elect the vice president in 2020

There's a national push for voters to elect the U.S. vice president separately from the president.

Vice.run, is a campaign that seeks to create a separate and independent ballot line for the vice president in 2020. The group is trying to collect -- from all 50 states -- voter signatures and pledges in support of the separate vice president election.

"An independently-elected vice president would give American voters a new level of direct control over who serves in the White House," Vice.run says on its website. "Further, a separately-elected vice president could provide a moderating influence on the partisanship of the president."

The founder of Vice.run David Blake announced on Twitter earlier this month that Utah became the first state to reach the signature pledges goal since launching their website in March.

Traditionally, presidential candidates and their running mates are listed on a ballot together, with voters selecting a joint ticket on Election Day. However, in the first U.S. elections, the vice president got into office by securing the second-highest number of Electoral College votes. When the 12th amendment was ratified in 1804, it required a distinct Electoral College vote for vice president and thus began the tradition of the joint ticket with the presidential and vice presidential candidates.

Voters can pledge their support online for the state where they are registered to vote.