On Nov. 8, 2016, Election Day, the people of Maine will be faced with many different choices and decisions to make. One of these choices will be whether voters wish to enact a ranked choice voting system here in Maine. Ranked choice voting is a system that would give voters the option to rank candidates running for office in order to preference. If none of the candidates receive a majority (more than 50 percent), the candidate in last place is eliminated and those ballots will then count toward the voter’s second choice instead. This process continues on until one candidate receives a majority.
Griffin Johnson, events organizer for the Committee for Ranked Choice Voting, has been busy reaching out all over the state to educate people on this issue. He’s traveled to many different places, from the Potato Blossom Festival in Fort Fairfield all the way down to Eliot for Eliot Festival Days. He’s talked to a lot of people and heard a lot of concerns about the dysfunction in both Augusta and Washington, D.C.
“Maine citizens recognize the lack of progress on the issues that matter to them. By requiring a majority to win, candidates will be encouraged to build consensus and promote realistic goals,” Johnson said. “Campaigns would also look and feel very different, because candidates will be seeking second or third choice rankings too. A ranked choice system would provide an incentive for candidates to reach out to voters outside their base. This would mean talking to more voters, less negativity and more issue based campaigns.
Under this system, voters are empowered to make much more meaningful choices. If your favorite candidate can’t win, your vote goes toward the candidate you ranked second. People would be able to vote for their favorite candidate without having to worry about their least favorite candidate winning, due to vote splitting or strategic voting.
“Coming from northern, Maine, our wants and needs are often overlooked or put to the side during elections. With this new system all votes would matter and carry the same amount of weight.” registered voter Tanya Pasquarelli said. “In the last 40 years only two of our governors have won the majority vote. That, to me, is a serious problem.”
Ranked choice voting is a non-partisan issue with broad support among Republicans, Democrats, Greens, Libertarians and Independents. If approved by voters, this reform will also affect our polarized party primaries. Republican and Democratic nominees will be backed by a majority of their party’s voters, which will help increase voter turnout in the general election. “This isn’t a liberal or conservative idea. As a representative democracy, it’s important to empower voters and restore majority rule,” Johnson said.
For more information on Ranked Choice Voting, please visit www.rcvmaine.com.
