To the Editor:

While we had plenty of close elections earlier this month, voter participation was disappointingly low. How can we motivate more voters to participate in our municipal elections?

One answer is to use ranked choice voting which provides opportunities for more diverse candidates, allows voters to have real choices (without fear of a wasted vote), and ensures election winners receive a majority of the votes (over 50 percent). New Jersey towns, including Princeton, should have the opportunity to use ranked choice voting if they choose.

We can make this happen by calling on our New Jersey legislators to support the “NJ Municipal Instant Runoff” bills (A 4744 and S 2992) and by asking for committee hearings to improve the bills. For example, we should increase the number of towns that qualify and apply them to many offices, not just mayoral races. I would love to see our local citizens and elected officials, too, join me in contacting our legislators. Here is an easy way to do it: https://p2a.co/Hgw6nE7.

Susan Colby
Bunn Drive