Three out of four IRV ballot measures across the country won at the polls on November 6th. In both Sarasota (FL) and Aspen (CO), over three quarters (77%) of voters voted YES to use IRV for local elections!

In Pierce County (WA), voters overwhelmingly defeated measures to delay implementation of Instant Runoff Voting from 2008 to 2010 and to limit the number of required rankings on the ballot to three.

Unfortunately, Instant Runoff Voting supporters lost the measure in rural Clallam County (WA), where, if adopted, would have instructed the county commission to adopt IRV for county offices.

In other news, San Francisco, Takoma Park, Cambridge and Hendersonville all used Instant Runoff Voting to elect their local officials. San Francisco and Takoma Park didn’t have competitive races that required a runoff which means that there is no Instant Runoff Voting story to tell in these elections. The news in San Francisco is the delay in publicizing final election results due to new state administrative mandates, which were imposed in response to problems with voting machines.

In Cambridge, where voter turnout has declined in recent elections, voting numbers increased slightly this year when all city council and several school board races were up for reelection. Most incumbents held their ground.

The most eventful story was in Hendersonville (NC) where Instant Runoff Voting was piloted in at-large city elections. Exit polls show that the elections went well. Voters overwhelmingly understood how to use Instant Runoff Voting and preferred it over the traditional two-round runoff that required two trips to the polls. These results mirror the experience of voters in Cary (NC), where Instant Runoff Voting was piloted last month.

These exit poll results aren't suprising and are consistent with findings in other cities where IRV is used. In overwhelming numbers, voters say that they undertanding and like IRV. Click here for a summary of IRV exit polls across the country.

Here in Saint Paul, IRV supporters Melvin Carter and Russ Stark, won seats on the City Council. Their support will be important as the Saint Paul Better Ballot Campaign seeks their endorsement to put IRV on the November 2008.