Letter to the Editor
Thank you for covering the first ever Green Party of Florida Nominating
Convention in St. Petersburg earlier this month. Your article correctly
pointed out that Florida Greens decided by a very narrow margin not to
run a presidential candidate in 2004. Does this mean that we Greens are
not serious about building a viable third party in Florida and across
the United States? No, it means that we're willing to carefully
consider the ramifications of our actions as we build a democratic
grass-roots political organization that challenges corporate control of
the two major parties. It also means that we're willing to work with
others whenever we share a common interest.
To this end, we invite Democrats, Republicans, Independents, Libertarians and others to join us in removing the so-called "spoiler" effect from Florida politics by supporting a constitutional amendment that requires instant runoff voting be used in all general elections in the state. The language for such an amendment has been drafted, and a PAC is currently being formed. Be part of the solution! Visit www.cirv.org.
Nick Manolukas, Sarasota
To this end, we invite Democrats, Republicans, Independents, Libertarians and others to join us in removing the so-called "spoiler" effect from Florida politics by supporting a constitutional amendment that requires instant runoff voting be used in all general elections in the state. The language for such an amendment has been drafted, and a PAC is currently being formed. Be part of the solution! Visit www.cirv.org.
Nick Manolukas, Sarasota
Election Day '09 was a roller-coaster for election reformers. Instant runoff voting had a great night in Minnesota, where St. Paul voters chose to implement IRV for its city elections, and Minneapolis voters used IRV for the first time—with local media touting it as a big success. As the Star-Tribune noted in endorsing IRV for St. Paul, Tuesday’s elections give the Twin Cities a chance to show the whole state of Minnesota the benefits of adopting IRV. There were disappointments in Lowell and Pierce County too, but high-profile multi-candidate races in New Jersey and New York keep policymakers focused on ways to reform elections; the Baltimore Sun and Miami Herald were among many newspapers publishing commentary from FairVote board member and former presidential candidate John Anderson on how IRV can mitigate the problems of plurality elections.