Instant Runoff

The Groundhog Day Election In Los Angeles

Ron Tang — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 08:22:00 -0400

After a fiercely fought primary election, no winner emerged in last week's election in the LA County Supervisor race between City Councilmember Bernard Parks and State Senator Mark Ridley-Thomas. With barely one-sixth of all voters participating, millions of dollars spent, and a race that turned increasingly negative, neither Ridley-Thomas nor Parks could muster a majority (50 percent plus one) in the nine-candidate field. As a result, both candidates must now duke it out for another five months until the November general election -- leaving voters in the crossfire of more mudslinging and personal attacks.

According to some political consultants and politicians,… more

Top L.A. Labor Group Embraces Election Reform

Communications — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 14:29:00 -0400

The Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO has endorsed a critical reform for Los Angeles elections: Instant Runoff Voting (IRV). The County Federation, the second largest chartered Labor Council of AFL-CIO in the country, represents over 350 unions and over 800,000 workers. Maria Elena Durazo, the County Federation’s Executive Secretary-Treasurer, noted that IRV would benefit voters, working families and taxpayers alike: “By saving millions of taxpayer dollars and relieving voter fatigue, IRV will benefit all of Los Angeles. We strongly urge the Los Angeles City Council and Mayor Villaraigosa to put IRV on the… more

CA Event: Instant Runoff Voting in Los Angeles

Communications — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 03:00:00 -0400

A New America Event
06/02/2008 - 12:00pm

On Monday, June 2nd, the New America Foundation's Political Reformr Program held an engaging panel discussion and luncheon on instant runoff voting (IRV) in Los Angeles.

Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) is a critical electoral reform for the City of Los Angeles that allows voters to rank a first, second and third choice for each office. IRV elects majority winners in a single election without the expense and voter fatigue of a second election. IRV holds great promise to increase voter turnout while saving taxpayers $8 million dollars each election cycle (source: LA city clerk).

A broad coalition is coming together to support IRV, with endorsements from, amongst others, the League of Women Voters, the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, labor unions, voting rights groups, neighborhood councils and political leaders like former Mayor Richard Riordan, labor leader Dolores Huerta, Anthony Thigpenn, and Antonio Gonzalez.

For more information about IRV in Los Angeles visit the website www.IRVinLA.org.

L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce Endorses Key Election Reform

Communications — Tue, 13 May 2008 04:55:00 -0400

Contact: Mr. Gautam Dutta, Esq. (213.480.0994; dutta@newamerica.net)

Los Angeles CA -- The Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce has endorsed a critical election reform: Instant Runoff Voting (IRV). Former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan, the League of Women Voters of Los Angeles, and key labor unions like UNITE HERE have also endorsed IRV.

"Instant Runoff Voting will create more competitive races, increase voter participation and eliminate costly runoff elections," said Gary Toebben, President & CEO, Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce. "The L.A. Area Chamber strongly urges the City Council and Mayor Villaraigosa to put IRV on the ballot this… more

A Way Out Of the Nader Dilemma

Ron Tang — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500

With Ralph Nader in the race, Democrats are fuming and no doubt preparing to use the same legal tricks they used in 2004 to keep Nader off the ballot in many states. Republicans are cackling with glee.

But Republicans shouldn't cackle too loudly. They've also been hurt by the spoiler dilemma.

In fact, the GOP lost control of the U.S. Senate due to Libertarian Party candidates in Montana, Washington, Missouri, Nevada and South Dakota spoiling things for Republicans. And many observers believe that Bill Clinton beat George H.W. Bush in 1992 only because Ross Perot drained away enough votes from Bush.

The… more

Voter Education and Outreach in San Francisco to Implement IRV

Political Reform — Sun, 17 Jun 2007 06:39:00 -0400

San Francisco voters approved Proposition A in March 2002 that adopted instant runoff voting (also known as ranked choice voting) to elect local offices in San Francisco. The first election occurred in November 2004. For that election, the Board of Supervisors funded and the Department of Elections conducted a voter education and outreach campaign leading up to the first election. Approximately $750,000 was spent by the Department of Elections to educate the 440,000 registered voters in San Francisco.

For the complete description and evaluation, please see the attached PDF file below.

No Way to Run an Election

Articles — Thu, 17 May 2007 10:46:00 -0400

The sound of hissing air leaking out of Los Angeles democracy is unmistakable. A check-in at one precinct by 2:00 p.m. on election day revealed that only two voters out of the 1,073 registered in that precinct had turned out to vote. By the close of the polls, it was up to four. This makes the 10% overall turnout in the March 6 elections -- already the lowest in decades -- look like a democratic flood.

Each of the 122,436 ballots cast Tuesday, out of nearly 2 million registered voters, cost taxpayers more than $40 -- an expensive ticket to a… more

A Better Way to Vote

Political Reform — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 03:00:00 -0400

"The majority rules!" is one of the most frequently heard battle cries of American politics, but the reality is otherwise: Every year, in scores of state and local elections, no candidate wins a majority. That results in either costly runoffs or "winners" who in fact have been rejected by as many as two-thirds of the voters in a multi-candidate field. Minnesota, for example, hasn't had a governor elected with majority support since 1994 (Jesse Ventura won with only 37% of the vote). North Carolina spent $3.5 million of the taxpayers' money in 2004 on a runoff to… more

New Study Highlights Problems with Runoff Elections in Los Angeles

Communications — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 17:47:00 -0400

LOS ANGELES, CA – As Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa proposes decreasing the city of Los Angeles’ budget deficit, a new study suggests another way to save taxpayers tens of millions of dollars: eliminate the May runoff election and instead use instant runoff voting to elect majority winners in a single election.

Los Angeles taxpayers are about to spend an estimated five million dollars for a May 15 runoff election in which fewer than 10… more

Instant Runoff Voting for the City of Los Angeles

Political Reform — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 14:15:00 -0400

Overview

The City of Los Angeles currently uses a two-round runoff system to elect its mayor, city attorney, city council and controller. One election is held in early March, and if no candidate wins a majority of the vote, a second election between the top two finishers is held in May. Voter participation is usually low, with only 10 percent of registered voters participating in the March 6, 2007 election. In addition, LA taxpayers pay millions of dollars for administering the second election. Candidates also must raise funds for a second election, undermining campaign finance reform.

Instant… more