Richard Schmalbeck got it wrong in his Dec. 28 Point of View article that blamed Ralph Nader's candidacy for Al Gore's losing the presidency to George W. Bush. The real culprit is the lack of instant runoff voting(IRV) in U.S. presidential elections.
As Schmalbeck pointed out, Nader attracted 97,000 votes in Florida and 29,000 votes in New Hampshire -- far more than the margin by which Bush gained those states' electoral votes and thus the presidency. Polls show most Nader voters would have supported Gore if Nader had not been on the ballot.
The instant runoff allows voters to rank their choices (first, second, third, etc.) in a multicandidate election. Votes then transfer from losing candidates to the voter's next-choice candidate. With IRV, Nader supporters in Florida and New Hampshire could have cast their second choice vote for Gore, allowing him to carry both states and win the electoral vote decisively.
Nader and those who support him have the same right all Americans enjoy to fully participate in the political process. IRV would let them support their candidate of choice without having that vote boost someone whose policies are anathema to them. I hope Schmalbeck will join the effort to bring IRV to more U.S. elections.
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.