Intricacies of instant runoff voting explained
Next Tuesday, Minneapolis voters will use a new system called instant runoff voting (IRV) to elect municipal offices including mayor, city council and park board. Across the river, St. Paul voters will decide on a referendum that asks whether the city should switch to instant runoff elections in future elections. A University of Minnesota expert who can speak about IRV and what it means for voters and election officials is:
Rachel Smith, director of the Election Administration Project at the University of Minnesota Humphrey Institute
Smith, a former elections manager for Anoka County, is confident that the majority of voters will have little trouble understanding the new system of voting. “My main concern is if voters will understand how votes are tallied after the election, especially in the vote for two or vote for three seats,” said Smith.
To interview one of the experts, contact the University News Service, (612) 624-5551.