This year, the Maine Legislature is again considering joining the National Popular Vote Compact. NPV will ensure that all votes for president are counted equally, and will change presidential campaigning, which today focuses exclusively on 12 battleground states. Many Mainers are concerned that small states will lose our influence on elections, should we change how […]
America and Connecticut need Ranked Choice Voting
Our nation’s electoral systems desperately need attention, something which became even more evident when a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6. Partisans disagree about what needs reforming and why. No single measure by itself will put us back on track.
However, the time has come in Connecticut to consider a simple, feasible and nonpartisan reform that has been gaining momentum across the country: Ranked Choice Voting. We are accustomed to elections in which a voter marks a ballot for one candidate only, and where the candidate with the most votes wins. Unfortunately, in crowded primaries, and general elections with more than two candidates, this method of “plurality voting” often produces “winners” who fail to represent the preferences of a majority of voters.
Hickman should replace Bellows
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You may be tired of hearing about elections, but we have another important one coming up in Maine Senate District 14 on March 9. Now that Shenna Bellows is secretary of state, there will be a special election to fill that seat. I urge you to vote for Craig Hickman in this important race.
He has been our representative in Winthrop, as well as Readfield and North Monmouth, for eight years and always worked with integrity, seriousness, and accessibility.
I had occasion last year to testify before a joint committee in which Craig was a member. I feel strongly that we need to get rid of the Electoral College and was there to testify in favor of the National Popular Vote Compact. It is very possible that it could be enacted by enough states to take effect before the next presidential election. It passed in the Maine Senate last year and came nearly passed in the House. Craig supports this and we need his help to get it passed. More information about
While some readers say unifying the country means holding insurrectionists accountable, others say a good first step toward unity would be ending impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump.
Proposals to abolish the Electoral College are ultimately impractical. It’s simply not in the interest of enough states to ever vote for the necessary constitutional amendment. But who can argue against the principle that every vote should count?