I was glad to read that Warren Hinckle thinks instant runoff voting is a good idea in principle ("Who's on Second?" Oct. 28), but he errs when he suggests the implementation of instant runoff voting will be costly.

In fact, the Department of Elections just requested a $3.5 million supplemental appropriation for the recall, which is a reasonable estimate
of the cost of a citywide election, which we'll be facing in December due to The City's failure to implement instant runoff voting this year.

The City has signed a $1.6 million contract to modify its equipment to implement instant runoff voting, and The City has appropriated $750,000 for voter education. This is a total one-time cost of $2.3 million.

So it looks to me like we save $1.2 million in the first year ($3.5 minus
$2.3 million). In future years, it's all savings, no cost.

As a voter and a taxpayer, I can't wait to use instant runoff voting to elect supervisors next year.

Caleb Kleppner

The City