For Immediate Release

May 15, 2006

FFI: www.betterballotcampaign.org, www.fairvotemn.org
Media inquiries: Kelly O’Brien, 612-227-9102, kellyobrien@visi.com

Minneapolis, MN—The Better Ballot Campaign, an effort to bring instant runoff voting (IRV) to Minneapolis elections, passed a significant landmark when the Minneapolis DFL party overwhelmingly endorsed the campaign at its May 13 convention. Over eighty six percent of delegates voted in favor of the endorsement.

The Minneapolis DFL joins scores of neighborhood, social justice, religious and political organizations in supporting this effort.

Instant runoff voting, also known as ranked choice voting, is a method of voting where the candidates are ranked in order of preference. IRV encourages more positive campaigning, eliminates the need for a primary election, demonstrably increases voter turnout, and allows voters to vote for their first choice without inadvertently supporting their worst choice. IRV is used for elections in San Francisco; Cambridge, Mass.; Burlington, Vt.; Ireland and Australia among other places.

Tony Solgård, president of FairVote Minnesota, is encouraged by the DFL endorsement. “I’ve been working for fifteen years to bring Minnesota the good news about how we can improve the quality of our democracy through advanced voting methods. It is satisfying that so many others now see the potential and are taking action.”

The Better Ballot Campaign’s goal is to have the City of Minneapolis Charter amended to allow instant runoff voting for all municipal elections. These races include mayor, city council, park and library boards, and board of estimate and taxation. The Better Ballot Campaign will ask the Minneapolis City Council to put the instant runoff voting amendment proposal on the November general election ballot. It is also conducting a petition drive toward the same goal.

FairVote Minnesota President Tony Solgård, Better Ballot Campaign organizer Jeanne Massey, and others are available to discuss instant runoff voting and the Better Ballot Campaign.

Takoma Park to run next city election with IRV

Learn more about it at FairVote IRV America 

On April 10, 2006, the city council of Takoma Park, Maryland voted unanimously for a second and final time to change the city council charter to ensure all future city elections are held with instant runoff voting. The vote followed a resounding 84%--16% win in a November 2005 advisory measure. IRV will be used in November 2007 elections for mayor and city council, although could be used earlier to fill any vacanies. Ballots will be counted by hand, as the city changed to paper ballots in 2005 to save money.

Takoma becomes the fifth city having adopted IRV in the modern era. San Francisco (CA) and Burlington (VT) have run successful IRV elections. Voters in Ferndale (MI) and Berkeley (CA) supported IRV by overwhelming margins, and IRV will be used once it can be implemented. Several other jurisdictions have changed their charters to allow IRV to be implemented by statute.

The list of people and organizations endorsing the Better Ballot Campaign is growing steadily.  The most recent additions are:

• Minneapolis DFL Party

• TakeAction Minnesota

Be sure to check out the full list!

Burlington Free Press
April 4, 2006

Opinion
by Scudder Parker (the Democratic candidate for Governor in Vermont)

Voters and elections officials in Burlington should be congratulated on the smooth implementation of instant runoff voting (IRV) during the recent mayoral race. No matter which candidate one supported in that election, there can be no dispute about how flawlessly the new IRV system performed in smoothly achieving a majority winner in a multi-candidate race.

You can influence the structure and processes of city government by serving on your city's charter commission (107 Minnesota cities have charters). Voting methods such as making a change to Instant Runoff Voting come under the purview of the Charter Commission.

Progressive Wins Instant Runoff Vote in Burlington
Published on Wednesday, March 8, 2006 by the Associated Press
by Ross Sneyd
 
BURLINGTON — Burlington's instant runoff voting system was called into action on its inaugural run Tuesday, electing Progressive Bob Kiss mayor on the second ballot.

Burlington Free Press

http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060308/NEWS01/603080316/1009&theme=

Read the article by Ross Sneyd

Published on Sunday, March 5, 2006 by the Associated Press