New Way to Vote

[xoxoxoBruce]

I got an email from Garlic and Grass stating in part;

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Oct. 8, 2004) - Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., today introduced H.R. 5293, the Majority Vote Act of 2004, which would require States by 2008 to conduct general elections for Federal office using an instant runoff voting (IRV) system. It also directs the Election Assistance Commission to make grants to States to defray the costs of administering such systems. The law would be applied to all federal elections in the States and include the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, and the United States Virgin Islands.

Jackson said, "The term 'instant runoff voting system' means a system for the election of candidates under which 'runoff counts' of candidates are conducted in rounds. Voters vote by ranking candidates on the ballot according to the order of their own preference. If in any round no candidate receives a majority of the votes cast, the candidate with the fewest number of votes is eliminated and the remaining candidates advance to the next round. In each round a voter shall be considered to have cast one vote for the candidate the voter ranked highest on the ballot that has not been eliminated. The runoff counts are carried out automatically at the time the votes are cast and tabulated so there is no actual second election. A candidate is elected only when they reach 50 percent plus one...

The first thought I had was, watching the news from around the world, I remember radical splinter groups that had to be placated in order to gain control for a major party. And although it's a little different, these groups of very few people had a disproportionate amount of power. I'd have to think long and hard on this one before giving it a nod.....too many pitfalls.