DENVER — Primary and general elections would change dramatically in Colorado if voters approve Proposition 131.
It would establish an all-candidate primary, in which every candidate, regardless of their party, would appear on the same primary ballot.
“As it stands right now, you know, the political parties have got a lot of power in selecting who the ultimate [nominee] is going to be,” said Andrea Wilkins with the League of Women Voters of Colorado , which endorsed Proposition 131. “I think that 131 has the potential to do a lot of good things for our election systems and for the voting experience.”
The top four vote-getters in the all-candidate primary would advance to the general election, where voters would rank their choices in order of preference.
With ranked-choice voting, voters rank the candidates by preference. A candidate needs a majority, over 50%, to be declared the winner.
If no candidate receives that in the first round, the candidate with the lowest vote total is eliminated. Voters who supported the candidate who was eliminated would still have their ballot counted. Their vote would just go to their next choice. This process continues until someone gets a majority of the vote.