After 52% of Maine voters opted in 2016 to implement Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) for legislative and gubernatorial elections, the compelling electoral reform has been sparking increased interest across the nation. According to FairVote, 18 states have current legislative efforts to enact RCV, also known as Instant Runoff Voting (IRV).
Voter Choice Massachusetts, which helped generate support for the Maine effort, quickly mobilized in Massachusetts to translate any momentum from that victory into effective local action. Working on both the legislative angle as well as the statewide ballot initiative process, multiple bills have been introduced in the state legislature and dozens of volunteers have been organizing to rally support. They have teamed up with FairVote, the leading national non-profit advocating for RCV and other important electoral reforms.
The fight won’t be easy. The Maine law is being challenged by both Republicans and Democrats in the state’s Supreme Judicial Court. And a hopeful bi-partisan effort in Utah was recently shut down by Republicans in the State Senate. When those in power feel threatened, we can never underestimate the extent they will go to defend and consolidate their power. South Dakota voters recently passed the first-in-the-nation statewide Anti-Corruption Act bill, which is legislation designed by the advocacy group Represent.Us to bring an end to pay-to-play corruption nationally, one state (or even city) at a time. The Republican-controlled state legislature promptly repealed it, and the Republican governor signed the repeal bill.
The Clean Elections fiasco in Massachusetts is the poster child for the vile anti-democratic tendencies of the Democratic Party in one-party Massachusetts. Despite 2/3 of voters in 1998 supporting the bill which radically weakened the grip of big money on our political system, the Democrats repealed the bill on a voice vote — evading a roll call of how they voted. But with 54% of Massachusetts voters now unenrolled in any political party (compared to 34% Democrats and 11% Republicans), and broad disdain for politics-as-usual, voters have run out of patience for such shenanigans.
Instead of waiting for the state legislature to do the right thing, We the People of Massachusetts must take matters into our own hands and use the ballot initiative process to pass Ranked Choice Voting. We must assume that the Democrats will do whatever it takes to maintain their control, and that the Republicans will fight to preserve their standing as the sole opposition party.
The time is right for a huge victory in 2018, and Voter Choice Massachusetts can use your support. Click here to volunteer, and here to donate. Massachusetts has led the charge for revolutionary change in the past, and we can be at the forefront of permanently restructuring our political system so that it represents the diverse voices and interests of We the People.