Hendersonville City Council Election November 6, 2007 Instant Runoff Voting A Pilot Program

Instant Runoff Pilot Program North Carolina Instant Runoff Pilot Program SESSION LAW 2006-192 HOUSE BILL 1024 Approved for up to 10 cities in 2007 Approved for up to 10 counties in 2008 Hendersonville City Council voted unanimously to utilize this method on August 9, 2007. City of Hendersonville

What Is Instant Runoff Voting? Instant Runoff Voting combines the Primary and Election Day into one election. Voters indicate their top choices for the two available seats, then in a second step, they rank the remaining candidates in order of preference.

Benefits of Instant Runoff Voting  It saves taxpayers & candidates money now used to hold two elections.  It ensures higher voter turnout than when voters are asked to return for a runoff. It makes government more representative with a winner chosen by more voters. It is ready to be administered securely and effectively by election officials.

Support for Instant Runoff Voting Recommended by Robert’s Rules of Order. Used for Australia’s national elections since 1918. Has won support of the League of Women Voters after full studies in states such as Minnesota, Washington, Vermont, Arizona, Florida and California. Endorsed by major newspapers across the country including USA Today, Detroit Free Press, Seattle Times, & Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. Endorsed locally by the Hendersonville Times-News (8/15/2007) as “a stroke of common sense.”

Where Is Instant Runoff Voting Currently Used? Utah: Since 2002, the Republican Party has used IRV at state conventions to choose congressional and statewide nominees. Louisiana: More than 10,000 overseas and out-of-state military voters received IRV ballots in 2004. Arkansas and South Carolina now have similar laws. Vermont: The city of Burlington began using IRV in mayoral elections in 2006 with 99.9% of voters casting a valid ballot. California: San Francisco began using IRV in 2004. The city expects to save at least $15 million over 10 years. Cities: Minneapolis and cities in MD, MI and WA have adopted IRV.

… And There’s More Colleges: IRV is used for student elections at colleges such as Duke, Rice, UVA, and UCLA. In fact, more than half of U.S. News’ top 30 universities use IRV. Political Scientists: The American Political Science Association uses IRV to elect its president. Awards: College football’s Heisman Trophy and the Academy Award nominees are selected by ranked voting methods.

How Instant Runoff Voting Works STEP ONE: First Round of Counting Voters select their choices for the two City Council seats just as they have done in previous elections. They are allowed to vote for as many as two candidates for the two at-large positions. Following the election, the voters’ choices are tallied. If a candidate(s) gets enough votes to win, then they are declared the winner and no further counting is necessary.

How Instant Runoff Voting Works STEP TWO: Second Round of Counting If one or both seats lack a candidate with enough votes to reach the majority threshold, the top candidates move into the instant runoff round. The winners are then determined by adding their first round totals to any alternate votes they receive in the second round. The candidate(s) with a majority of the votes after the two rounds of counting wins.

Hendersonville City Council IRV Ballot Page 1 (DRAFT)

Hendersonville City Council IRV Ballot Page 2 (DRAFT)

Voting the Ballot

Voting the Ballot

Voting the Ballot

Voting the Ballot

Voting the Ballot

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Voting the Ballot

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For More Information Henderson County Board of Elections (828) 697-4970 Tom Wilson, Chairman Betty Gash, Secretary Joseph Abrell, Member Beverly Cunningham, Director NC State Board of Elections (919) 733-7173 Gary O. Bartlett, Executive Director Keith Long, Voting Systems Manager District 1 Election Technician Karen Brinson, (919) 816-6813