Better Ballot Kansas City

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In the News!

- Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

- A recent article in the Kansas City Star, referencing "multiple choice voting."

- Read a response from Ruth Lee, member of Better Ballot KC, to the above article. 

- Read a Letter to the Editor from Eric Barr, local activist and member of Better Ballot KC

- Read a letter from Mary Lindsay, local activist and member of Better Ballot KC

Welcome to Better Ballot KC!

What Is Better Ballot Kansas City?

We are a group of Kansas City voters who wants to bring Instant Runoff Voting to Kansas City.  IRV is a system of voting that allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference (i.e. first, second, third, fourth and so on). The voters' preferences are counted until a candidate emerges with a true majority of the vote: over 50%. Voters can rank as many or as few candidates as they wish, but can vote without fear that ranking less-favored candidates will harm the chances of their most preferred candidates. In elections today at almost every level, candidates only have to receive more votes than the other candidates to win - often earning a very small percentage of the actual vote - which ignores the true preferences of most of the voters.
 
We believe Kansas City needs IRV for 3 main reasons:
  1. IRV saves money. over $500,000 per election cycle according to local election authorities.

  2. IRV provides more choice.  Voters have a reason to listen to EVERY candidate because even degrees of preference count.  And candidates have a reason to run smarter campaigns focused on real issues and dialogue.  Less negative campaigning, more talk of the issues that matter.  As a result, IRV can create a higher voter turnout.

  3. IRV removes the spoiler effect.  The "spoiler effect" is the by-product of our current plurality-based voting system, in which a candidate only has to receive a plurality of the votes - that is, most of the votes cast out of all the candidates running - instead of a true majority (over 50%).  IRV removes the "spoiler effect" from elections by requiring candidates to receive a true majority of the votes cast in order to win.
We can't change the electoral system without you!  Please join us.  Email us at info@betterballotkc.org, or join our list serv at kansas-city-ranked-choice-voting@googlegroups.com.

For more information on Ranked Choice Voting, visit www.fairvote.org.

A Deeper Explanation
The voter ranks their choice in order of preference on the ballot.  The voter can rank as many or as few candidates as they wish.  First choices are tabulated, and if a candidate receives a majority of first choices, he or she is elected. If no candidate receives a clear majority of votes on the first count, a series of runoffs are simulated, using each voter’s preferences indicated on the ballot. The candidate who received the fewest first place choices is eliminated. All ballots are then retabulated, with each ballot counting as one vote for each voter's highest ranked candidate who has not been eliminated. Specifically, voters who chose the now-eliminated candidate will now have their ballots counted for their second ranked candidate -- just as if they were voting in a traditional two-round runoff election -- but all other voters get to continue supporting their top candidate. The weakest candidates are successively eliminated and their voters' ballots are redistributed to next choices until a candidate crosses a majority of votes. 

Watch this video from FairVote:


 
 - Wikipedia entry
 
- Try this great FAQ 
 
Instant Runoff Voting: 
Save Money - Build Democracy

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