Re: The joy of Democracy

On Fri, 4 Oct 2024 20:26:12 -0000 (UTC), Lawrence D'Oliveiro wrote:

Ranked-choice is technically not “proportional representation”, but it
does have a lot of the same effect. And it might be a better fit for
places (like the US) where individuals matter more than parties.

On 2024-10-04, rbowman <bowman@montana.com> wrote:

A couple of initiatives are on the ballot in this state that might lead to
a ranked choice system. One is a 'top four' open primary and the other is
a requirement for a majority rather than a plurality.
>
It's somewhat controversial on both sides. In many parts of the state 'top
four' becomes a de facto Republican primary which isn't quite what the
supporters envision.
>
It will be interesting. The Democrats tried to get the Greens thrown off
the ballot. Not very democratic of them, is it?

Ranked choice eliminates the "wasted vote" issue with third parties, and
can allow a startup party to gradually become viable. And it tends to
drive the candidates towards the center. If the "top four" are all
republicans, the winner will be the one who is least offensive to the
minority democrats.

By the way - which state are you in?