February 3, 2018

Maine to be first state to implement ranked choice voting

Portland Press Herald -Supporters of ranked-choice voting submitted more than 80,000 signatures Friday to send the issue back to the Maine ballot in June after lawmakers voted to delay and potentially repeal the law.

In November 2016, voters approved a ballot initiative that would make Maine the first state in the nation to implement ranked-choice voting. But lawmakers passed a law delaying the effective date until December 2021 and then repealing the ranked-choice voting process altogether if a constitutional amendment hasn’t been passed by then to address legal concerns.

The campaign needs 61,123 signatures from registered Maine voters to qualify for the Maine ballot, and campaign spokeswoman Crystal Canney said town clerks have already certified 72,175 of the roughly 80,000 signatures.

Sam Smith - Those wanting to advance ranked choice voting in their states should hook up with Fair Vote, a national organization that started in your editor's living room back in 1992.  Fair Vote is run by Rob Richie, one of the most effective activists I've run across in over five decades of journalism.

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