Santa Fe New Mexican - A state district judge
ordered the city of Santa Fe to use ranked-choice voting in the March
election, when voters will choose their first full-time mayor.
Judge
David Thomson said the ranked-choice software is “clearly available”
and must be used in the election in accordance with the city charter
amendment of 2008 that authorized the system.
“To
me, in the end, the concerns [about accurately implementing
ranked-choice voting] do not meet the law,” Thomson said. “The concerns
do not meet the facts.”
What happens next in the five-way competition for mayor and two City Council races with three candidates apiece is not clear.
City
attorneys said that whether they decide to pursue an appeal will be up
to outgoing Mayor Javier Gonzales and the eight-member council.
For
his part, Gonzales wants to implement the new election system. Soon
after Thomson announced his decision, the mayor said he would call for a
special meeting of the council within 72 hours and introduce an
emergency resolution to spend $300,000 for public education and
implementation of the new system “to make sure we get this right.”
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