Type to search

Dear Decaturish – I support ranked choice voting

campaign coverage Decatur Editor's Pick Metro ATL

Dear Decaturish – I support ranked choice voting

A sign directs voters to the Oakhurst Baptist Church polling location in Decatur on Jan. 5, 2021. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Share

We accept letters to the editor. Letters to the editor are opinions of the authors of the letter, not Decaturish.com. Everyone has an equal opportunity to submit a letter to the editor. So if you read something here and don’t like it, don’t jump on our case. Write a letter of your own. All letters must be signed and are typically between 500 to 800 words. We reserve the right to edit letters for length and content. To send your letter to the editor, email it to [email protected].

Dear Decaturish,

I’ve been a resident of Decatur and  DeKalb County for the last ten years.

I’m writing in support of instant run-off/ranked choice voting. This common sense election reform would let voters make fewer trips to the polls and stop elections from being decided by the few voters who show up at the run-off.

In the last election, those of us in District 5 went to the polls in September to elect someone to stand in for our beloved John Lewis until a new representative could be seated in January. With our current run-off system, that election stretched to December, and we sent a representative to Congress for less than a month – a waste of money and effort!  With IRV/RCV, we would have settled this in the first election.

In addition to time and money, we also lost voters – nearly one-third fewer voters turned out for the run-off election.

Our Atlanta neighbors have already passed a resolution asking the state to allow local elections to use IRV/RCV. A progressive city like Decatur should join Atlanta and John’s Creek in leading the way on this election reform.

Better Ballot Georgia is leading the effort to educate and recruit supporters for Ranked Choice Voting in our state. Join the movement by going to www.betterballotgeorgia.org and see how you can help.

– Beth Robbins, Decatur GA

If you appreciate our work, please become a paying supporter. For as little as $3 a month, you can help us keep you in the loop about your community. To become a supporter, click here

Want Decaturish delivered to your inbox every day? Sign up for our free newsletter by clicking here.