[EM] Fwd: PRESS Release - IRV case appealed!

[Kathy Dopp]

FYI,  I believe that this appeal by plaintiffs will prevail and I hope
that will put an end to IRV/STV in the U.S. I haven't seen a copy of
the actual Appeal document yet. I hope that the attorneys emphasized
the unequal treatment of voters by IRV/STV methods and not just its
nonmonotonicity.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Andy Cilek <acilek at worldnet.att.net>
Date: Tue, Jan 27, 2009 at 12:59 PM
Subject: FW: PRESS Release - IRV case appealed!
To: kathy.dopp at gmail.com

PRESS RELEASE

January 27th, 2009

The Minnesota Voters Alliance appealed yesterday the Hennepin District
Court decision upholding Minneapolis' Instant Runoff Voting election
methodology as constitutional.  The Alliance considers the appeal
necessary considering, as a case of first impression, the undermining
of constitutional principles delineated by the court.  In one part of
the decision for instance, the court found it an acceptable risk that
a voter, in ranking candidates under an IRV election, can hurt his or
her favorite candidate simply by ranking them as their first choice.
This is indeed perverse.

Andy Cilek, spokesperson for the Minnesota Voters Alliance said, "It
is an unacceptable risk for the people that in their intent to help a
candidate win, and to politically associate with that candidate, he or
she can actually hurt that candidate's chance of winning by voting him
first. No candidate is guaranteed a win, but no voter should be
subjected to have another voters' second or third choice impair a
voter's original intent."

It is the contention of the Minnesota Voters Alliance to bring to the
appellate court's attention what it finds questionable legal reasoning
of the lower court.  According to the Alliance, the court did not
appreciate the development and current trends in the law applicable to
protecting voters' rights.

Mr. Cilek also stated, "Minneapolis citizens who voted for IRV in the
City's referendum in 2006 did not have the right to violate the voting
rights of the minority, and they may have been misled regarding the
implications of IRV.   In fact, they were never told of the negative
impact upon an individual's right to vote.  But, even if they wished
to endorse a different way of voting in municipal elections, they
certainly did not realize the City would write ordinances after the
fact in conflict with the Minnesota and United States Constitutions."

The Minnesota Voters Alliance expects the City of Minneapolis to file
a motion for an expedited hearing.  The motion would by-pass the Court
of Appeals and have the appeal heard directly before the Minnesota
Supreme Court.  This could ensure a decision before the 2009 municipal
election cycle begins.  Mr. Cilek indicated the appellants would join
that motion if filed.

Minnesota Voters Alliance
www.MNVoters.org

For more info, contact Andy Cilek

Andy Cilek – acilek at att.net


-- 

Kathy Dopp

The material expressed herein is the informed  product of the author's
fact-finding and investigative efforts. Dopp is a Mathematician,
Expert in election audit mathematics and procedures; in exit poll
discrepancy analysis; and can be reached at

P.O. Box 680192
Park City, UT 84068
phone 435-658-4657

http://utahcountvotes.org
http://electionmathematics.org
http://kathydopp.com/serendipity/

Post-Election Vote Count Audit
A Short Legislative & Administrative Proposal
http://electionmathematics.org//ucvAnalysis/US/paper-audits/Vote-Count-Audit-Bill-2009.pdf

History of Confidence Election Auditing Development & Overview of
Election Auditing Fundamentals
http://electionarchive.org/ucvAnalysis/US/paper-audits/History-of-Election-Auditing-Development.pdf

Voters Have Reason to Worry
http://utahcountvotes.org/UT/UtahCountVotes-ThadHall-Response.pdf