Maine, Seattle Voters Pass Money-In-Politics Reforms

Voters in Maine and Seattle approved initiatives Tuesday to raise the voices of ordinary people in the political process and reduce the influence of wealthy special interests. These victories show that states and cities aren’t waiting on a gridlocked Washington, D.C. to fix our broken campaign finance system and are instead taking matters into their own hands, said money-in-politics group Every Voice.

In Maine, by a vote of 55%-45%, voters approved an initiative to strengthen the state’s landmark Clean Elections system that will strengthen disclosure and enforcement requirements and restore the small-donor public financing system, so candidates can run competitive campaigns for office. Mainers voted to preserve the nation’s most blue-collar legislature and ensure that farmers, waitresses, and factory workers are still able to run and win elected office without having to rely on lobbyists and wealthy special interests.

“Today Mainers sent a message loud and clear. We want transparency. We want a government accountable to everyday people. And, we want a strong public financing Clean Election law that puts voters in control of our democracy – not wealthy special interests and high paid lobbyists. With tonight’s victory – that’s exactly what we will get,” said Andrew Bossie, Executive Director of Maine Citizens for Clean Elections, who along with Mainers for Accountable Elections lead a massive statewide grassroots effort to pass the initiative.

CLICK HERE for more information about The Maine Clean Election Act (MECA).

Across the country in Seattle, where they have all-mail ballots, early results show Initiative 122 will easily cruise to victory. Voters there said “Yes” to creating a first-in-the-nation system that will democratize city elections by giving every voter a chance to invest in political campaigns through a “Democracy Voucher” program. The initiative also limits contributions for city contractors, closes the revolving door, and increases transparency and accountability.

CLICK HERE for more information about Initiative 122's Democracy Voucher system.











NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker

Why I like Ranked Choice Voting

I just read an article in The Bangor Daily News of Maine, by Dick Woodbury, who served 10 years in the Maine Legislature, advocating for a less partisan approach to politics and policy-making.  He is leading a citizen initiative to establish Ranked-Choice Voting (RCV) in Maine.

He writes:

The best and most cost-effective of these reforms is ranked choice voting, which uses a vote counting process that is identical to holding run-off elections, while avoiding the delay, expense and drop in participation of requiring voters to go back to the polls.

The key point is this: With ranked choice voting, your ballot already indicates who you would choose in a run-off election, if a run-off count is needed to establish a majority winner.

These are his 6 reasons for supporting RCV:

1. The finally elected candidate is chosen by a majority of voters.

2. There is no such thing as a spoiler candidate.  If a candidate turns out not to be electable, then he or she is eliminated in the counting process.  The candidate doesn’t “spoil” the result by taking away votes from somebody else.

3. Voters can cast their vote for a preferred candidate without the strategic dilemma of potentially helping a candidate they oppose.

4. By avoiding spoiler candidates and strategic voting, the entire messaging of campaigns, media coverage and public evaluation of candidates will focus on issues, vision, experience and capabilities; not on polling and electability.

5. Elected candidates can serve with a credibility and mandate that can only be delivered by a majority of votes cast.

6. Most importantly, campaigns will be more civil and respectful, as candidates avoid alienating their opponents’ supporters.  Rather than only appealing to loyal supporters, a winning candidate needs to appeal to a genuine majority of all voters, including those whose first choice may be somebody else.

This initiative will be on the Maine ballot in November 2016.

I strongly support this method of voting.  But I would go farther and remove primary elections and just have a General Election with Ranked-Choice Voting.

This would be like voting in Louisiana with RCV.

What do you think about this type of voting?











NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker Technorati Tag in Del.icio.us

Backing an Independent in Maine

I have been watching the Maine Senate race were Augus King, the former independent Governor, is running as an independent.

We now find out that Americans Elect has become the super PAC in support of King. The ad buy so far is from Oct. 5-25.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg donated $500,000. The other two major donors are Peter Ackerman, one of the Americans Elect founders, and John Burbank, the founder of Passport Capital, gave $500,000 and $750,000, respectively.

This super PAC in support of King, countered spending from the NRSC and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in support of Republican Charlie Summers. It's the first pro-King advertising from an outside group, in a race where the GOP is pouring in resources amid a shifting Senate battleground.

The NRSC, National Republican Senatorial Committee, has filed a complaint with the FEC about the involvement of Americans Elect.

I hope this support for independent candidates becomes a template for the future, so independent candidates will be elected to take away the two-party's majority in Congress.









NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
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