OK, I don’t get it. I need simple things and that is what I thought voters got with ranked-choice voting. It’s simple — just put down your choice (1 – 2 – 3) on the form and the computer does the work of figuring out who gets the lowest number of votes and is justly […]
ranked choice voting
Posted inMaine
Analysis: Legislature to choose among 5 options for ranked-choice voting
AUGUSTA — Protected by Maine’s high court, a key group of Democrats looks open to eventually joining Republicans in repealing the state’s pioneering ranked-choice voting law before the 2018 election. The Maine Supreme Judicial Court issued a unanimous opinion in May finding the law unconstitutional after it passed with 52 percent support from voters in 2016, saying it violates […]
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Posted inMaine
Analysis: What’s next for ranked-choice voting in Maine?
AUGUSTA — The implementation of ranked-choice voting hangs in limbo. The system, which election reform advocates have called a “better way to vote,” could be headed back to voters or could die at the hands of the Legislature, depending on what happens with two 11th-hour bills allowed into the legislative process on Thursday. Maine voters […]
Posted inMaine
Court: Ranked choice voting in Maine unconstitutional
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine’s highest court says an election overhaul approved by voters in November runs afoul of the state constitution. The court declared Tuesday that the ranked-choice voting goal of ensuring a majority for the winning candidate is in conflict with the constitutional mandate that only a plurality of the vote is needed […]
Posted inLetters
Chance for ranked choice voting
I thank the people of Maine for passing the ranked-choice voting referendum in November. The race for Sen. Angus King’s seat is shaping up to be quite interesting more than a year before the election. Sen. King will be running again, but Gov. Paul LePage and State Sen. Eric Brakey have already expressed interest in […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine Senate OKs asking for court review of ranked-choice voting
Updated 11:33 p.m.: AUGUSTA (AP) — The Maine Senate has approved asking the state’s highest court to rule on the ranked choice style of voting that voters approved in November. Voters would rank their preferred candidates, allowing for an “instant runoff” of top vote-getters in a multi-candidate contest. The request asks the Maine Supreme Judicial […]
Posted inLetters
Voters approved ranked choice voting
I am concerned about the the citizen-approved initiative on ranked-choice voting. While RCV was narrowly defeated in my town of Lisbon, it did pass statewide. I’ve been told that there is a move afoot within the Maine Senate that would call into question the constitutionality of the approved voting system by asking for an advisory […]
Posted inLetters
Ranked choice makes sense
After reading John Pape’s letter (Oct. 28) on the costs of ranked-choice voting, I was surprised at how inaccurate it was. It is important to correct his notions. The actual cost of implementation, as pointed out by State Treasurer Terry Hayes, would be an estimated $550,000. Gov. Paul LePage has acknowledged the issues with the […]
Posted inLetters
‘No’ to Question 5
I am voting against Question 5, “An Act To Establish Ranked-Choice Voting.” I attended a panel discussion on that issue at the Caswell Conservancy Center in Harrison on Oct. 25 and listened to Kyle Bailey present the pro-Question 5 side and State Rep. Heather Sirocki present the anti-Question 5 side. It is still confusing to […]
Posted inLetters
In rebuttal: Ranked-choice voting can work
After reading the guest column offered by another resident of North Carolina, Lee Mortimer (Sun Journal, Oct. 30), I decided to offer a counterpoint. On Nov. 8, Maine’s voters have the opportunity to adopt ranked-choice voting, which is Question 5 on the ballot. Whether Maine should use RCV is up to the voters. What I […]