Ranked choice voting may feature on DC’s ballot in November

Washington, D.C. voters will get the opportunity in November to choose whether or not they want to implement a ranked choice voting initiative.

The ballot measure, also known as Initiative 83, was proposed by an organization called Make All Votes Count and spearheaded by Lisa D.T. Rice, an advisory neighborhood commissioner from Ward 7.

The initiative seeks to allow independent voters to participate in party primaries and gives voters the ability to choose a preferred candidate first, and if they don’t win, voters can choose their next favorite until one candidate can secure more than half of the votes.

“We deserve a better system,” Rice told the Eagle. “Our current system consistently benefits entrenched politicians with deep pockets; very much not serving the younger demographic.”

The voting system helps to elect more women and minority candidates, according to the organization’s website.

The D.C. Democratic Party filed two lawsuits against the measure claiming that the initiative violated the U.S. Constitution as well as the Home Rule Act, which permits candidates to be elected in partisan elections. They also argue that the system would make it more complicated for voters and deter them from participating in the voting process.

However, a judge threw out the first lawsuit last summer and dismissed the second one last week.

“Our role as a party is to fight and advocate for democrats, and we will continue to do so,” Charles Wilson, the party’s chairman, told the Washington Post following the judge’s dismissal. “We want to uphold the principles outlined in the Home Rule Charter and advocate for an electoral system that ensures fair representation in our Democratic elections.”

Meanwhile, Vote No on Initiative 83, a group countering the Make All Votes Counts, claims that the initiative is “an attack on Democratic values.”

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

“Electing women of color and people of color is not an issue in the District of Columbia,” according to Vote No On Initiative 83’s website. “The Council of the District of Columbia is the most diverse elected council in the metropolitan area and perhaps in the nation.”

The D.C. elections board approved the initiative last month, despite opposition from the city’s Democratic Party. Proponents must still garner enough signatures for the measure to appear on the ballot in November, the outlet reported.