What if we held an election and nobody came?

Before you laugh and turn the page, be mindful that we're getting perilously close to that scenario these days; earlier this month, less than 8 percent of New York City's voters turned out for primary elections. And, if you're inclined to brush off that statistic with a "not in Minnesota" sense of superiority, sorry; last month, only 7 percent of voters turned out for St. Paul's primary. Like our endless recount in the Coleman-Franken race, single-digit turnout is an indicator that our voting system needs a tuneup.

Fortunately, St. Paul voters can do just that on Nov. 3 by adopting a proposal for instant-runoff voting -- also called ranked-choice voting -- in mayoral and City Council elections.

Minneapolis voters adopted instant-runoff voting in 2006 by a nearly 2-1 ratio and will use it for the first time Nov. 3. Looking at how the city has prepared for this event, we are confident the rollout in Minnesota's biggest municipality will be smooth and well-received. While new in Minneapolis, IRV has been successfully used in cities across America and in democracies around the world, including Ireland and Australia.

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Star Tribune, October 29, 2009