Instant runoff voting continues to gather steam in non-governmental
elections as well as governmental ones. Two particular notable adoptions
this year were for the American Chemical Society and the LiveJournal
Advisory Board. The American Chemical Society s a 160,000-member group
that describes itself as the "world's largest scientific society.
" LiveJournal is one of the world’s leading online communities. In a
race for its advisory board with some 25,000 voters, IRV resulted in a
definitive winner despite voters choosing among 23 candidates.
IRV is used for dozens of student elections at major universities and
colleges. Notable first-times uses this year were at NC State, University
of Iowa and UC-San Diego.
[LiveJournal news release on election]
[FairVote's page on IRV on campus]
[American Chemical Society page on IRV ]
LiveJournal's instant runoff election spotlights IRV's growing use
Others include world's largest scientific society & dozens of schools
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Instant Runoff Voting in Los Angeles Gains Steam
Chamber of Commerce and former Mayor Riordan Back IRV
 A city of nearly four million people, Los Angeles has taken giant strides toward putting instant runoff voting for city elections on the November 2008 ballot. The L.A. Chamber of Commerce and former Republican mayor Richard Riordan recently endorsed instant runoff voting, with the Chamber's press release saying: "IRV will save money for candidates, who can now spend all their resources on a single race focused on the merits of their platforms, rather than bashing opponents. This new campaign dynamic will bring new candidates and their issues into the local debate, leading to more competitive races for important local government posts."As detailed in the IRV in L.A. website run by the New America Foundation, other backers include the League of Women Voters, Common Cause, National Latino Congreso and numerous elected leaders. UCLA uses IRV for its student government elections. [IRVinLA.org] [Statement by L.A. Chamber of Commerce] [New America Foundation's Political Reform Program] [Californians for Electoral Reform] [Another successful IRV election at UCLA] [NEW: Memphis, TN to vote on IRV in November] [NEW: Glendale, AZ to vote on IRV in September] |
Colorado legislature passes bill to advance IRV and choice voting
 The Colorado legislature on May 6th gave final passage to HB 1378, a bill to allow all Colorado municipalities and special districts to use instant runoff voting and choice voting. A model for other states, the bill was drafted as a result of recommendations from a legislature-initiated task force on voting methods last year that reviewed a wide array of voting methods, including alternative single-winner methods like approval voting and range voting.Kudos to Colorado advocates such as Common Cause's Elena Nunez, FairVote Colorado's Rick Van Wie, state representative John Kefalas and senate majority leader Ken Gordon. Two Colorado localities -- Basalt and Aspen -- already have adopted instant runoff voting for mayoral elections. [Colorado Voter Choice Task Force Report] [Bill history for HB 1378] [Commentary in favor of instant runoff voting in Denver] [Commentary in favor of instant runoff voting in Aspen] |
