<html><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:HelveticaNeue, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif;font-size:16px"><div tabindex="0" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1443720433620_2348" class="" role="presentation"> <div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1443720433620_2415" class="" tabindex="0"><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1443720433620_2418" class=""><div class="" id="yiv7495155061"><div class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1443720433620_2417"><div class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1443720433620_2416" style="color:#000;background-color:#fff;font-family:HelveticaNeue, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif;font-size:16px;"><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_7431">1- Constitutionally, the govt. cannot give some citizens better voting rights than others. <br class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_7437"></div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1440438697391_10002"><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_4903" dir="ltr">***> 2- Now several states allow overseas military to use IRV ballots for primaries.</div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_5096" dir="ltr">3-
Since some GIs are choosing the IRV ballot, they obviously think that
an IRV ballot has an advantage vs the old system. No judge could
rationally reject this fact.</div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_4914" dir="ltr">4-
That means that ANY non-military voter can file suit for the right to
request/use an IRV ballot in the primary and only have to vote once,
just like overseas military personnel.</div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_5064" dir="ltr">5-
When the judge rules that IRV ballots are superior, this will make
national news. The NYT will evaluate the benefits of IRV. Political
candidates will have an easy issue to promote IRV. The judge's decision
should also explain that the ability to rank all candidates is better
than only three.</div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_4916" dir="ltr"><br class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_7445"></div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_4919" dir="ltr">6- So all we need now is one voter in one of these states to file a suit and show up in court.</div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_4921" dir="ltr"><br class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_7449"></div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_5065" dir="ltr"> I
also want to share another tip that will work after IRV makes your
local news. By scheduling an IRV press conference just before an
Oakland special election for city council, (and inviting most of the
candidates), we were able to basically force EVERY candidate to promise
that they would support IRV, and after the election we had enough
council votes to get a measure approving IRV for local elections on the
next ballot. <br class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_7452"></div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_5066" dir="ltr"><br class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_7455"></div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_15_0_4_1443593583412_17" dir="ltr">
btw, We might consider keeping IRV distinguished from RCV. I know
that locally (in the bay area), four cities voted for "IRV." Instead,
SF and Alameda county supervisors bought machines that can only count
three rankings, and they call it Ranked Choice, and that is inferior to
true IRV where only 3 rankings are allowed. An anti-IRV Berkeley
council member did his own research study that proved that all rankings
should be allowed, but the county made the final decision. Now it
should be obvious that he was right, because both the Oakland and SF
mayoral elections were so close that the # of expired ballots vastly
outnumbered the top three ranked candidates, so there is no way to know
which candidate was actually preferred by the most voters. (From my
observation, the final winner would not have won either election if all
rankings had been allowed. <br class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_7458"></div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_15_0_1_1443593583412_1530" dir="ltr"><br class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_7461"></div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_15_0_4_1443593583412_20" dir="ltr"><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1443720271217_2947">
That's why we need pressure for the state(s) or feds to provide all
counties statewide with standard equipment, so that counties don't each
have to waste a lot of time (it took us 10 years) and money going
through the process on their own. If (we) write up a ballot
initiative to do this, I believe it will be possible to raise the $2,000
filing fee and lots of groups will want to help get signatures. <br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1443720271217_2967"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1443720271217_2968" dir="ltr">(ps: to get democrat support, it is best to clarify that the best use of IRV to better empower voters is to retains partisan primaries and only use IRV for general elections. I have discussed this with MANY elected Democrats, and usually they do not support IRV because they confuse it with PR or they don't want to lose partisan primaries, which CA has recently lost, so now money is more powerful than ever) <br></div></div><div class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_5067" dir="ltr">-Sand/ sennetwilliams@yahoo.com<br class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_7466"></div></div><div class="" dir="ltr" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_15_0_1_1443593583412_1472"><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1443720271217_3032"><br><span class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_15_0_4_1443593583412_16"></span></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1443720271217_3033"><span class="" id="yiv7495155061yui_3_15_0_4_1443593583412_16"><br id="yiv7495155061yui_3_16_0_1_1443591678833_7470" class=""></span></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div dir="ltr"> </div></div></div></body></html>