With Videos below! I’m trying to keep this short but it’s complicated.
This is boosted from a comment I made earlier today. Our usual method of voting is plurality voting. Also called One Past The Post voting. Winner takes all. And often, if not usually, your choices with any chance of winning comes down to an either/or vote for one candidate or another. Alternative voting is something like Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) where you rank all the candidates in order of preference. There are different ways to tabulate the results and there have been some concerns about the way we have usually gone about it in this country. Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) or Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) systems can also be the alternative to the regular winner takes all system. I believe the names are largely interchangeable. Please correct me if that isn’t true.
I began watching a number of YouTube videos about our traditional ranked choice voting process. These voting system have been very occasionally used in the US for about 100 years. The issue is they have been shown to be problematic in a number of ways. The traditional method and objections to it, I believe, are valid if only for how many potential problems are possible. I think evidence shows despite the small number of these elections there have been significant problems which emerge. At the same time people concerned about this have been trying to develop and use newer systems of ranked choice, like STAR or Approval voting systems which propose to fix these problems. If we like the idea it's important to realize often Republicans and those who prefer the plurality voting system which many of us see as so easily corruptible, can produce a long list of objections to stop it. So that ranked choice might never be allowed to be used widely.
IRV / RCV problems include NOT eliminating split votes or spoilers. It doesn't always allow you to vote your conscience with any assurance that your vote will even be counted at all, as promised. It's expensive, can take several rounds to complete if there are many candidates. It can be gamed by wealthy individuals just like plurality voting. It's difficult to recount as opposed to the newer alternative systems. Where if anyone has the final total number of votes ranked for all candidates it can be verified in a recount by all observers which is not the case with the current system. That must be retabulated where the first tabulations occurred as they have all the multiple results. The newer systems only require one count or one additional runoff, no matter how many candidates for an election to be won. And eliminate the several additional recounts required with more participants running.
There are also weird algorithms where sometimes the absolutely most popular candidate overall approved by all the voters can be eliminated in the first round with none of their votes counting. Also multiple rounds of voting produce errors and expenses such as someone who lost in Alameda county in California then was seated for months until it was clear they hadn't won. Similar issues occurred in Burlington VT, the 2019 Alaskan special election, and New York mayor Eric Adams‘ campaign showing despite winning his total votes were under-counted.
If we don't want Republicans, or anyone, trying to prevent ranked choice voting from becoming possible in order to keep the system they know they can abuse, we have to figure this out. We need to educate ourselves on the different methods and find the fairest, simplest, yet most reliable and error free system or two. And start getting some real world results to establish a best system most voters would want. With local elections we have hundreds of opportunities to start using them on small, then regional and later state level races. We need actual data on what systems give the best result. If you are interested in the subject it’s something to encourage election boards to consider.
Here are the declared videos that outline problems and possible solutions.
This first one by Mr. Beat introduced me to the various systems. The second by him delved into a reconsideration of the results of the first video. Where were offered concerns about traditional IRV / RCV. The second video is a really long, detailed deep dive but makes clear some of the problems and potential solutions the educated voter and activist needs to consider.
This link is to Mr Beat’s in depth interview about STAR and other voting system. www.youtube.com/…
These others describe some issues and alternatives like STAR and Approval voting.
