In the 2000 elections, the voters of Pierce
County voted in three momentous races in which the winner
received less than a majority of the votes. These elections
changed the course of history, and are viewed by many as unfair
outcomes. From this election came an increased drive to reform
our election system to be more fair, to be more inclusive and to
inspire more debate of the issues. This eventually led to the
adoption of Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) in Pierce County and other
places around the US.
Pierce County's first RCV election was held on November 4, 2008,
and already the Pierce County Council has approved a measure to
put RCV back on the ballot in November 2009, to allows voters
the opportunity to or repeal, or keep, the system.
The League of Women Voters hosted a forum on
RCV on Friday, February 6, 2009 in response to this issue. It is
presented here.
During the forum, one
topic raised was the vetting of candidates by the parties.
Ranked Choice Voting provides the parties with the right to vet
their candidates, but the Top 2 does not. Read Kelly Haughton's
response to this
here.
