Editor’s note, 1/22/20: This afternoon, Washington legislators will hear HB 2529, a bill which proposes moving all local jurisdiction races to even years. The policy could have a dramatic effect on voter turnout across the state, giving more Washingtonians a voice in choosing their city and county leaders. Fewer voters turn in ballots in odd … Read more
Editor’s note: Nearly a year ago, we wrote this article about thinkers and journalists paying more attention to voting system reforms that give people more choices and more voice in elections. It felt like the first bubbling of what we hoped would become a wave of momentum. A couple recent victories for democracy reform show … Read more
The Oregon Voting Rights Act, HB 3310, passed Wednesday, June 12, with overwhelming bipartisan support, including a unanimous vote in the state Senate. Oregon decision-makers are united in their desire to ensure people of color have a fair shot at getting representation on school boards. As Sightline’s previous research shows, many Oregon school districts have … Read more
On June 5, Oregon’s legislature voted to become the 16th state to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. The initiative is an agreement among states to give their electoral college votes to the winner of the national popular vote. With Oregon’s adoption, the compact now has 196 electoral votes behind it and it needs … Read more
Portland’s city government website pulls no punches. “The City of Portland has the last remaining Commission form of government among large cities in the United States.” [content_box color=”green” type=”border”] Friday Forum, May 3, 2019 To attend, purchase tickets here. The forum begins at noon on Friday, May 4, 2019, at Sentinel Hotel, 614 SW 11th … Read more
City Club of Portland held an event a few days ago to release its long-awaited report about the city government. The volunteer research committee spent a year studying the issue in depth, including more than a dozen interviews with knowledgeable witnesses (full disclosure: I was one of the witnesses). The report, released Tuesday, February 12, identifies … Read more
As Washington lawmakers weigh the “local options bill” this session, Utahns are putting a similar measure into practice. The Beehive State passed a bill in 2018 clearing the path for cities to try ranked-choice voting. Six cities, including the fourth-largest in the state, are already on board and plan to use ranked-choice voting in their … Read more
Update: HB 1722 made it out of the House Committee on State Government & Tribal Relation on February 22. It will now need to gain approval in the House. Big reforms often get tested out at the local level before voters feel comfortable scaling up to state and national levels. That’s been the case with … Read more
When Sightline first started working on advanced voting systems, our main goal was for more people to know that they exist, and how they can improve democracy. In 2018, major media outlets helped us get the word out by publishing a slew of articles about and editorials in favor of ranked choice voting and proportional … Read more
After a long election, British Columbia’s referendum to upgrade to a proportional representation system lost, 61 percent to keep the current system to 39 percent. Although many BC voters feel the current First-Past-the-Post voting system is not working well, change from the status quo to an unfamiliar system can be a tough sell at the … Read more
