In ranked choice voting, voters choose candidates in order of preference. (Getty Images)
Oregonians have become increasingly dissatisfied with our systems of representation at the state and local level and are interested in ways to restructure our elections to better reflect their interests, according to surveys by the Oregon Values and Beliefs Center .
These sentiments would appear to set the stage for their approval of Measure 117 , which would establish systems of ranked choice voting for federal, state and local elections that promise more choices for voters and fewer obstacles for independent, centrist and minor party candidates.
But the center’s findings highlighted a notable difference between voters’ interest in electoral reforms (characterized as “reform curious”) and their more likely support for such reforms (“reform ready”). The center’s analysis put ranked choice voting in the “curious” category, and the design of Measure 117 makes me think that voters will not be ready to support it.