Letter writer proposes ranked choice voting for Antioch elections
Dear Editor:
One of the most basic principles of democracy is majority rule, but guess what? Antioch does not have majority rule! Our mayor and city council members are often elected without a majority. For example, in 2020 our mayor was elected with only 41% of the vote. In 2022 in District 1 the winner only received 31% of the vote. That is unacceptable.
There are two ways to make sure we have a majority winner. The first way is to have a primary election. Then the top two vote getters would have a runoff election. The second is to use a voting system called Ranked Choice Voting (RCV for short).
Having two elections is not a good system. First, it is much more expensive to have two elections than one. Runoff elections are a waste of taxpayers’ money. Second, less people vote in the primary and it is a less diverse group of voters. Third, the runoff election becomes very negative with lots of mudslinging.
Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) gives a majority winner in a single high turnout election. It is very easy for voters. Your #1 vote is for your favorite candidate, your #2 vote is for your backup candidate, etc. In addition, RCV has several other advantages. Elections tend to be positive and issue oriented. There is no worry about splitting the vote, and usually, more candidates run. RCV is used all over California and the USA. Voters like it. It is a proven system. RCV gives voters more choice and more voice.
Antioch needs RCV. Please call or email your council member and mayor. To get email updates or volunteer please go to http://calrcv.org/antioch.
Robert Bruce
Antioch
