David Grosso, a city council at-large member in Washington, D.C., has introduced a bill to use Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) for both the primary and general city partisan elections.
Instant Runoff Voting Amendment Act of 2014
The bill would cover the election of the Mayor, Attorney General, Chairman and members of the Council using instant runoff voting, and would require that District voting systems be compatible with an instant runoff ballot system, and setting a date and conditions for implementation.
The bill states:
(1) “Instant runoff voting,” also called “ranked choice voting,” means a method of casting and tabulating votes whereby the voters rank candidates according to the order of their choice and counting proceeds in rounds in which candidates are eliminated. In every round, each ballot is counted as one vote for the highest ranked advancing candidate.
(2) “Continuing candidate” means a candidate who has not been eliminated.
(3) “Continuing ballot” means a ballot that is not deemed an exhausted ballot.
(4) “Exhausted ballot” means a ballot that does not rank any continuing candidate, contains an overvote at the highest continuing ranking or contains two or more sequential skipped rankings before its highest continuing ranking.
Instant runoff voting shall be used for the primary municipal election in 2016 and all subsequent elections. If the Board of Elections certifies to the Mayor and the Council no later than November 1, 2015 that the Board will not be ready to implement ranked-choice balloting in 2016, then the District shall begin using ranked-choice or “instant runoff” balloting at the immediate next municipal election, including special elections.”
Effect on Rights of Political Parties
For all statutory and charter provisions in the District pertaining to the rights of political parties, the number of votes cast for a party’s candidate for an office elected by a ranked choice or instant runoff method is the number of votes credited to that candidate after the initial round of counting.
This section is confusing. Will have to do more research.
Open Primary Elections Amendment Act of 2014
Letting Voters Change Affiliation Before and on Primary Day
Grosso and Council members David Catania, Mary M. Cheh, and Tommy Wells have also introduced a bill to let independent voters join a party before and on primary day, giving them an opportunity to vote in partisan primaries. Current law does not permit voters to change from independent status to membership in a party during the 30 days preceding a primary.
It would amend the District of Columbia Election Code of 1955 to provide that a qualified voter voter shall have the right to change his or her party affiliation after the 30th day preceding an election and on election day.
After the election, a voter could use this procedure to reverse their registration:
1 - To make a registration update by mail, simply fill out a voter registration application with all of the required registration information.
2 - If you registered online, you may review and edit your registration form online. Once you have completed the form, print and sign it, and return it to the Board by mail.
3 - You may also update your registration in person at the Board’s Office.
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!
Michael H. Drucker
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