mayor

Minneapolis Mayoral Race 2013

As the saying goes, “close only counts in horseshoes, hand grenades and slow dancing.”

To those three, now add a fourth:  so-called “ranked choice voting” — also known as “instant run-off voting” — which is how Minneapolis will select its next Mayor this Tuesday.

I happen to be a HUGE proponent — and you should be, too.

IRV:  a Primer

If you’re not familiar with the concept, here’s how it works:  instead of simply voting for one candidate, voters rank order their choices (“first,” “second,” “third,” and so on).

mayor2Then, in a fractured or especially crowded field of candidates where no claims a majority, the individual with the fewest votes is eliminated, and their votes are shifted according to voters’ second choice.

The votes are then re-tabulated — instantly, by computer — to see if anyone now has more than 50%.

If not . . . wash, rinse, and repeat (or something like that).

President Al Gore

Not a big deal, right?

Actually, it’s a huge deal.

The immediate impact is to remove — once and for all — so-called political “spoilers.”

If the U.S. elected Presidents according to IRV, U.S. — if not world history — could very well be different.

That’s because the vast majority of Floridians who voted for Ralph Nader would have picked Al Gore as their second choice.

When the race finished in a 48% – 48% dead heat between Bush and Gore, something like 90% of Nader’s support would have then shifted to Gore, delivering the state — and election — to him.

No More Spoilers

A century earlier, IRV would have denied Woodrow Wilson the Presidency.*

horseshoesThat’s because the intramural scrum between incumbent William Howard Taft and “Bull Moose” challenger (and former President) Teddy Roosevelt divided the Republican vote.

Result?

Democrat Wilson’s 41% was enough to win.

Do you think a re-elected President Taft would have managed the country’s role in World War I as Wilson did, pushed the League of Nations, or advocated for dozens of other Wilson projects?

Doubtful.

Playing (Minnesota) Nice

Besides eliminating spoilers, IRV’s other effect is to change how candidates position themselves in an especially crowded field.

In fact, IRV changes the entire tenor of the campaign.

So, here in Minneapolis, instead of demeaning and attacking their rivals, the front-runners are pulling their punches.

Their logic:  whoever garners the most 2nd, 3rd and 4th choices is likely to prevail as mayor.

The obvious corollary:  if you want voters to see you as a viable 2nd choice, don’t antagonize them by roughing up their first choice.

California Voters Participate In The State's Pivotal PrimaryOne of the odder consequences in this year’s Minneapolis mayoral race is that the candidates are “playing nice” to such a degree that voters are hard-pressed to tell the differences amongst them.

Compared to the negative campaigning, sleaze and attack ads characteristic of “regular” politics . . . I’ll take it. 

Regional differences aside, opening up the country’s sclerotic if not corrupt, two-party political system is precisely what we need right now.

See also, “Virtual Front Porches:  Running for President, William McKinley-Style“; “Term Limits Redux.

*Of course, to reach that result would have required weeks (months?) of hand tabulating millions of ballots.

Which is to say, IRV is really only possible due to modern technology.

About the author

Ross Kaplan has 19+ years experience selling real estate all over the Twin Cities. He is also a 12-time consecutive "Super Real Estate Agent," as determined by Mpls. - St. Paul Magazine and Twin Cities Business Magazine. Prior to becoming a Realtor, Ross was an attorney (corporate law), CPA, and entrepreneur. He holds an economics degree from Stanford.

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