Virginian-Pilot LTE: Ranked-choice voting

The Virginian-Pilot | October 14

Re “With a proven track record, ranked-choice voting serves a chance” (Other Views, Oct. 2): As president of the League of Women Voters of Williamsburg and a longtime voting rights advocate, I want to applaud the recent opinion piece from Walter Olson.

Olson correctly points out that ranked-choice voting “is a voting method grounded in common sense with a time-proven track record” that is gaining momentum in states and localities across the country. The reason for this momentum is simple: It puts the interests of voters first.

Instead of rewarding the loudest candidate, the narrowest platform, or the best-funded candidate in a given race, ranked-choice voting forces those running for office to build a broad coalition of support across a number of different constituencies. In other words, it rewards civility and consensus-building.

In Virginia, both major parties have embraced ranked-choice voting. In 2021, it was used by the Arlington County Democratic Committee, as well as in the statewide nominating election of the Republican Party of Virginia. This is something that voters of all political stripes can get behind, and I hope that Virginia voters take the time to learn more about ranked-choice voting and — fingers crossed — use it in their own elections in the near future.

Susan Bivins, president, League of Women Voters of Williamsburg, Williamsburg

https://www.pilotonline.com/opinion/letters/vp-ed-lets-1014-20221013-jqzzrq6xdba6xn5ig6jivdsbwm-story.html