Ranked-Choice Voting Should Be Adopted for Princeton Elections
To the Editor:
New Jersey Democrats recently received sample ballots that look quite different and allow primaries to be more competitive (See “A Revamped Ballot Design Jump Starts Democracy in New Jersey” in the New Jersey Monitor). Another reform is in its initial stages in New Jersey — ranked-choice voting (RCV).
Red Bank has just joined Hoboken and Jersey City in the movement for electoral reform by passing a resolution in favor of RCV. They have all made the same commitment to their voters: if the New Jersey Legislature passes the Municipal and School Board Voting Options Act (enabling RCV elections), they will hold a referendum on RCV adoption in the next general election.
Princeton should join these New Jersey cities. One of the many advantages of RCV is that it is likely to attract more candidates for office, giving us more choice when potential candidates see that RCV is likely to give them a better chance to be competitive. To have the choice of using RCV, we need to urge our town Council members to pass a resolution that will have us ready to vote on using RCV in our elections as soon as legislators pass S3369 (and A5039).
Learn more about RCV in New Jersey at voterchoicenj.org and if you decide that having the choice to use RCV in New Jersey would provide the election reform we need, take action: tell our Council members to pass a resolution to hold a referendum on RCV adoption. Discussions with the mayor and Council members indicate that they need to hear from the residents of Princeton. So let them hear your voices.