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Sunday, July 5, 2009

Instant Runoff Voting Virus Aimed at Virginia

More Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) propaganda, this time aimed at the state of Virginia. Fair Vote is cranking out the usual talking points - that IRV is a miracle cure for whatever ails elections. You name it, they claim it. The problem is that its all been proven wrong.

Article is here

It's Time to Bring Majority Rule to the American Election Process Richmond Times Dispatch - Richmond,VA, USA. Instant Runoff Voting (or IRV) simulates the traditional two-round runoff by asking voters for their back-up choices, in case their preferred candidate ...


Whoa, stop right there! Virginia has enough problems running elections without adding the complications of IRV to the mix. Many counties in Virginia recently switched to paperless machines, some with wireless internet connections. Now, the state is transitioning again, but slowly - to optical scan by phasing out paperless. This will take years and counties are resisting by trying to stock up on spare touchscreen machines and parts. I posted a comment to the article. See below.

The Truth about IRV:
Instant Runoff Voting does not work as well as advertised, and has unintended consequences . Promises that IRV will save money, reduce negative campaigning, simplify elections, or provide a majority all in one election - are just not true. IRV is a vastly different way to cast, count and value ballots. Implementation is complicated and expensive and damaging to election transparency and the confidence in election results. Several places that have tried Instant Runoff Voting are ditching it or moving to ditch it. Pierce County Washington’s auditor says their county can save $600,000 next year if they ditch IRV.
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Final warning to Virginians, protect your elections, protect your voters: