Picking a challenger
Published March 4th 2004 in Salt Lake Tribune
Allow me to propose a solution to the spoiler effect regarding the Democrats and Ralph Nader's campaign. Perhaps a dialogue should be maintained between the two camps. Come to an agreement about a runoff election a month or two before November. The Democrats and Nader's campaign will split the cost. If no agreement can be made about paying for the runoff, or if the cost is prohibitive, then an independent poll shall be carried out, determining the most likely voter preference. The winner of this runoff or poll shall challenge Bush in November.

The loser shall throw his support behind the winner and withdraw from the race. The winner should also take on real election reform as an issue to prevent these sorts of dilemmas from happening in the future. You can learn more about fair election methods at http://www.fairvote.org.
    
Daniel McGuire
Salt Lake City

IRV Soars in Twin Cities, FairVote Corrects the Pundits on Meaning of Election Night '09
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.

And as pundits try to make hay out of the national implications of Tuesday’s gubernatorial elections, Rob Richie in the Huffington Post concludes that the gubernatorial elections have little bearing on federal elections.

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