Citizens for a Better Ballot and Tacoma News Tribune agree

Citizens for a Better Ballot, a group formed to promote election reform in the state of Washington, and the Tacoma News Tribune have weighed in on several of the charter amendments related to election reform before Pierce County voters this November.

Both have recommended

No on #4
No on #5
Yes on #6 and
Yes on #7.

Amendment #4 would delay implementation of Ranked Choice Voting until 2010. So far, no one has expressed out loud a reason why we should delay implementation. Pierce Auditor Pat McCarthy has declared that her department is going to be ready to go in 2008 and wants to implement in 2008. No one filed a "for" argument for this amendment for the voters pamphlet. No reason for delay. The voters passed this law in 2006 and want to see the county move forward with this experiment in voting, viewed by many as an alternative to the hated pick-a-party primary. Vote No on #4.

Amendment #5 would allow the Auditor to use a three ranking system in 2008, but would require Pierce County to stick with three rankings even if there were improvements in technology to allow voters to rank all candidates at some future point in time. Amendment #6 is superior since it allows the Auditor to implement technology enhancements as they become available. Vote No on #5.

Amendment #6, as mentioned above, would allow the Auditor to use a three ranking system in 2008, but would allow future improvements as technology changes. This is superior due to its flexibility. This amendment has no opposition. Vote Yes on #6.

Amendment #7 levels the playing field for independents and third parties. Think of it as an equal protection clause for independents. This is a good thing for democracy. This amendment was put forth by the Auditor's Blue Ribbon Review Panel on Ranked Choice Voting and is supported by the Auditor herself. This amendment has no opposition. Vote Yes on #7.