The “I won’t vote for the lesser of 2 evils” rubbish
“So 1 of the noms from 1 of the 2 major parties is going to win. & if you don’t vote, or you vote for 3rd party candidate, you’re inevitably hurting the candidate from 1 of major parties who’s closest to you in values — & helping the 1 farthest from you… as GOP has gone fascist, w unhinged #Trump at its head, potential consequences of your not voting or voting for a 3rd party candidate are horrific” https://open.substack.com/pub/robertreich/p/the-i-wont-vote-for-the-lesser-of?r=br61&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
every vote is a compromise if you're not the candidate, but I've been alive 45 years and never not been told that we can't afford to vote third party this time. even with the electoral college for president in solid blue states. and I know Democrats are constantly pushing back against #RankedChoiceVoting. and where is the public option Biden promised? vote strategically but also support reform. it just gets so tiresome. https://time.com/6112318/american-democracy-final-five-voting/
A political party, which is a private organization with no official government relationship, has the right to choose their nominee however they want.
But the general public, in general elections, should be able to rank their preferences for any number of candidates and win with a true majority. Not worry they will "throw their vote away" and lose to a horrible candidate in a plurality election.
A victory for the RCV campaign in November 2024 would be a significant breakthrough for voting justice, as it would liberate voters in Oregon from being required to vote for just one candidate.
Oregon voters will soon get to decide whether to adopt ranked choice voting statewide
A victory for the RCV campaign in November 2024 would be a significant breakthrough for voting justice, as it would liberate voters in Oregon from being required to vote for just one candidate.
Ohio had a successful implementation of Ranked Choice Voting in the past. This is not something I learned in Ohio History class growing up. It wasn't taught to my children either. Funny, that.
Ranked Choice Voting, formerly known as STV, did exactly what it's possible of achieving. It broke the hold of both parties over state and local issues. That's why BOTH parties fought so hard to remove it.
You can learn more of Ohio's specific history from the fairvote.org article below. Their site is a terrific place to learn about Ranked Choice Voting in general! ✌️
If one more 19 year old tells me “We need a third party in America,” I may just lose it completely. It takes years, decades, to build serious political movements and parties. It’s like wishing for a winning lottery ticket to pay your rent next Friday. It’s naive, uninformed, and guaranteed to fuck you up.
Article highlighting what voters in Ohio have been facing for years due to gerrymandering. We are not the only state suffering this way, it's not a group you want to join.
It briefly mentions proposed ways out of our gerrymandered hell to include alternative methods of voting. That's an idea I would love to see all stripes of Americans push hard for in the form of Ranked Choice Voting. It works, period. Both parties know it and fear it.
You can't scream at people to simply get out and vote to change things, or to stop threats, when the system is rigged against their participation.
EDIT: Since I first read and shared this article, it has been edited and shortened by the Guardian to focus more solely on abortion. My comments still stand.
I occasionally encounter people who still think that voting 3rd party in the US is a good idea; that it’s a way for them to express support for a maverick candidate; or that it’s an effective way to express dissatisfaction with their preferred major party.
There’s one really big problem with that: the #voting system most widely used in the US is INCAPABLE OF CAPTURING THAT KIND OF NUANCE. You may think you’re sending a message when you vote 3rd party, but the system quantizes your vote and essentially turns it into a vote AGAINST THE MAJOR PARTY MOST ALIGNED WITH YOU.
Unless the voting system is changed to capture voter nuance (e.g. #RankedChoiceVoting), you should NEVER vote 3rd party. Hold your nose and vote for the lesser evil. Realize that 3rd party candidates are usually funded explicitly to siphon votes away from a major party. Don’t fall for it.
CGPGrey made a video that I find invaluable in explaining why this is the case. Please give it a watch.
I'm rather excited about this. There has been a push to get #Oregon to adopt #RankedChoiceVoting for some time now. Some cities have adopted it already, but now a bill is on the Nov 2024 ballot to hopefully make it statewide for future sate and federal races.
I’m thankful for Diane Feinstein’s long and illustrious service to California and the country, but I’m disappointed that she got too cozy with power toward the end. While Barbara Boxer gracefully made way for Kamala Harris, Feinstein clung on to power even as she grew ever more disconnected from her constituents.
I’m not necessarily a fan of term limits, but I think the Democratic Party desperately needs to adopt #RankedChoiceVoting for their primaries, so that new faces can continue to emerge with popular support from the people.
"Ranked Choice Voting Maryland (RCV Maryland) is a non-partisan, grassroots coalition seeking to build a more effective, representative democracy through ranked choice voting elections. We are a collective of activists and supporting organizations seeking to modernize Maryland’s voting systems at the city, county, and state level."
I'm pro choice and pro marijuana legalization so yea #Ohio but I just hope people tried to get informed, thought hard and voted. Elections during odd years are generally even worse for turnout than those in even years when the president isn't on the ballot. Then there's primaries, ugh. #RankedChoiceVoting
#Fascism never occurs because the majority vote for them. It occurs because people are fed up with the status quo or are disillusioned with the choices they have and don't vote. Trump didn't win a majority, he won by less than 1/3rd of the eligible voters, but the last 3rd just never bothered to show up. #rankedchoicevoting and similar systems are the only way to ensure fascism can't weasel its way into government again. With RCV mudslinging doesn't work. With RCV people have choices beyond the 2 given them. More people show up to vote with RCV and feel heard. Donate to the OR and NV ballot campaigns for RCV next year. That would double the US states that use it. The more states that have it the more other citizens of other states will want it, ending this nasty mudslinging making politic boring again
That there's likely only two viable options in the US presidential election next year, is why they are both worse than most of us would like. There's little incentive to produce great leaders when it's easy to just demonize the only alternative. Long-term, if we want a better country, we need a better system. Please stop just berating people to fall in line. We get it. Make voting for the lesser evil just the first step towards a much better country. #RankedChoiceVoting https://time.com/6112318/american-democracy-final-five-voting/
Ranked-choice voting (RCV)
Ballotpedia’s go-to resource, with coverage, analysis and expert commentary on all things RCV, from a definition, to ballot measures, history, pro and con perspectives, and trends.
Explore the topics below for detailed information:
How RCV works
This section lists the general steps involved in ranked-choice voting (RCV) and provides detailed examples of its application.
In Arizona, Idaho, Pennsylvania, Oregon and Nevada initiatives are afoot to institute ✅ non-partisan primary elections, some involving ranked choice voting
Whereas Ohio Republicans are seeking to ❌ close their state's primaries
If the House used #RankedChoiceVoting to elect the Speaker, we could just put all the candidates on a ballot, vote, and have a new Speaker in a day. Instead, we get this clown show.
Oregon voters will soon get to decide whether to adopt ranked choice voting statewide (www.nwprogressive.org)
A victory for the RCV campaign in November 2024 would be a significant breakthrough for voting justice, as it would liberate voters in Oregon from being required to vote for just one candidate.