From: Steve Chessin
To: BRUCE KARNEY; City Council; McCarthy, Kimbra; , City Clerk Subject: Re: Please Use Ranked Choice Voting for Choosing the Council Appointee Date: Friday, January 20, 2023 9:03:38 AM
Attachments: ATT 2 - Sample Interview and Selection Procedure.pdf CAUTION: EXTERNAL EMAIL - Ensure you trust this email before clicking on any links or attachments.
Dear Council Members, City Manager and City Clerk,
While as President of Californians for Electoral Reform I am a strong support of ranked choice voting (RCV), and do appreciate Mr. Karney's support for RCV (and Bruce I am glad you cc'd me on this message), and while RCV is excellent for public elections where the number of voters is much greater than the number of candidates, RCV does not always work well when the number of voters is small compared to the number of candidates.
This is because when the number of voters is small compared to the number of candidates, ties are more likely to occur than when the number of voters is much larger than the number of candidates. While breaking ties by lot in public elections is perfectly acceptable, using a random method may not be the best way to break a tie when a small group can deliberate about the choices in between votes, and can agree to use randomness only after deliberation has not changed any votes.
The method outlined in the attached document (provided to me and Mr.
Karney by Councilmember Lucas Ramirez) is an excellent method for small group decision making when the group can meet and discuss the alternatives in between votes, especially when ties occur. (There are other methods that are appropriate for small group decision making as well, and I would be happy to explain them if there is interest in learning about them.)
While I would like to see RCV, especially its multi-winner proportional form, used to elect the Mountain View City Council, I do not think it is the best tool for the job of filling a vacancy on the Mountain View City Council. Other methods, such as the one being proposed, that work well in small groups but would not work well for public elections, are more appropriate.
I hope this helps.
--Steve Chessin
President, Californians for Electoral Reform
www.cfer.org
On 1/19/23 3:43 PM, BRUCE KARNEY wrote:
> Dear Council Members, City Manager and City Clerk,
>
> I very much hope you will decide to use ranked choice voting in
> selecting Sally Lieber's replacement.
>
> I believe it is a perfect tool for identifying the individual with the > greatest appeal to the community at large.
>
> Local resident Steve Chessin (copied) is an expert on ranked choice > voting and I am sure he can answer any questions you have on the topic. >
> Cheers,
> Bruce Karney
>