PRESS
Watch this video from Fox 5 exploring if D.C. is ready for ranked choice voting.
“A potential ballot initiative could give D.C. voters a crack at overhauling the election system. The proposed Initiative 83 would create a ‘ranked-choice voting’ system, and open primaries up to all voters, including independents. Lisa Rice is behind the push and she makes her case on ‘The Final 5.’”
Recent campaign press
What Washingtonians are saying about Ballot Initiative #83
Carrying thousands of petitions in black cases, some stacked in a red Radio Flyer wagon, supporters of major changes to D.C. elections delivered more than 40,000 signatures to the Board of Elections in Navy Yard on Monday for a ballot initiative to bring ranked-choice voting to D.C. elections and to allow registered independents to vote in primaries.
Felder might’ve only won by a few hundred votes in a divided field (and you can thank D.C.’s lack of runoff elections or ranked choice voting for that outcome) but he has both the youth and experience to do this job as long as he likes, if he plays his cards right.
Passage of Initiative 83 by D.C. voters would end the practice of elections being won with a paltry plurality of the vote in multicandidate races.
In Washington, D.C., one in six voters are registered as independents. I am one of them. We are prohibited from voting in our city’s taxpayer-funded primary elections. Our votes are suppressed.
The crowded contest left many voters struggling to make a choice, including Kingman Park resident Marty Smith, 42, who said he wished the city had ranked-choice voting or a runoff system to winnow the options.
We have more faith in Washington’s voters, from all communities. Parents rank their preferences in the city’s school placement lottery, and the D.C. Housing Authority uses ranked preferences for public housing assignments.
FairVote, a group that advocates ranked-choice voting, has released research suggesting that the system tends to benefit candidates and voters of color.
More campaign press
- (7/18/24) WTOP: DC initiative brings the prospect of ranked choice voting to the forefront again
- (7/16/24) Washington City Paper: Initiative 83 Looks Close to Making the November Ballot. Can Opponents Still Derail It?
- (7/2/24) Washingtonian: What Would Ranked-Choice Voting Mean for DC Politics?
- (7/2/24) Washington Informer: I-83 Proponents Submit Thousands of Signatures to D.C. Board of Elections
- (7/2/24) Washington Examiner: DC voters inch toward defying mayor with huge shake-up for elections
- (7/2/24) WUSA9: Group hopes to bring ranked choice voting to the District
- (7/1/24) WUSA9: Ranked choice voting will be on the DC ballot this November
- (7/1/24) Washington Post: Petition to change D.C. elections gets thousands of signatures. What’s next?
- (7/1/24) DC News Now: Group in DC file paperwork for Initiative 83
- (6/5/24) Washington Post: Status quo prevails in D.C. primary dominated by crime concerns
- (5/25/24) Washington Post Editorial Board: Here’s who The Post endorses in D.C. Council primary elections
- (5/22/24) Washington Post: They want to change how D.C. votes — one signature at a time
- (4/21/24) Washington Post: In D.C.’s Ward 7, a ‘generational’ race to replace council’s Vince Gray
- (4/19/24) The Hoya: Panelists Discuss Ranked-Choice Voting and Polarization With GU Politics
- (4/5/24) The Hoya: Ranked Choice Voting Clears Another Hurdle to Ballot Initiative, Paves Way for More Candidates in DC Primaries
- (4/4/24) The Eagle: Ranked-choice voting initiative may appear on D.C. ballot
- (4/3/24) Ms. Magazine How Women are Fighting for More Equitable Elections Through Ranked-Choice Voting
- (3/29/24) Washington Post Judge dismisses lawsuit against D.C. ranked-choice voting ballot measure
- (2/23/24) The Hill (Opinion): It’s not a democracy when the parties control our elections
- (2/21/24) Washington Blade: Capital Stonewall Democrats host forum on proposed ranked choice voting, open primaries
- (2/15/24) Washington Socialist: Should the DC Left fear Ranked Choice Voting or Semi-Open Primaries?
- (1/20/24) Fox 5 DC (Video): Is D.C. ready for ranked-choice voting?
- (12/3/23) Washington Post (Letter to the Editor): Ranked-choice voting is better than a coin flip
- (11/30/23) City Cast DC: What Ranked Choice Voting Could Mean For D.C.
- (11/30/23) City Cast DC: Ranked Choice Voting Has Powerful Enemies in D.C.
- (11/9/23) Washington City Paper: Filing Mistakes Could Doom the D.C. Democrats’ Legal Challenge to Initiative 83
- (10/5/23) East of the River (Opinion): DC Should Have Open Primaries
- (9/25/23) Washington City Paper: D.C. Democrats’ Legal Challenge to Initiative 83 Exposes Long-Simmering Frustrations with Party Leadership
- (8/21/23) Stateline: As ranked choice voting gains momentum, parties in power push back
- (8/18/23) Washington Blade (Opinion): Open primaries, ranked choice voting support better democracy
- (8/11/23) Washington Post Editorial Board: A D.C. Democratic Party lawsuit is decidedly undemocratic
- (8/11/23) Washington Post (Letter to the Editor): A little hypocrisy from D.C. Democrats on voting
- (8/9/23) Business Insider: DC Democrats argue ranked choice voting is confusing to voters in predominantly Black areas as they seek to block potential vote on implementing the system
- (8/9/23) Daily Caller: DC Dems’ Lawsuit Says New Voting Reform Could Cause ‘Confusion’ For Black Voters
- (8/8/23) Washington Post: D.C. Democrats sue to block ranked-choice voting ballot measure
- (8/8/23) WTOP: DC’s Democratic Party sues over ballot measure that would allow ranked choice voting, open primaries
- (8/8/23) The Hill (Opinion): Could election reform in DC help conservatives embrace it nationwide?
- (8/7/23) DCist: D.C. Democratic Party Sues To Keep Ranked Choice Voting And Open Primaries Off The Ballot
- (7/25/23) DC News NOW: Proponents push for ranked-choice voting in DC
- (7/21/23) Washington Post: D.C. ranked-choice voting ballot initiative clears first hurdle
- (7/21/23) Washington Informer: D.C. Board of Elections Deems Polarizing Ballot Initiative ‘Proper Subject Matter’
- (7/19/23) Washington Informer: Ranked-Choice Voting and Open Primaries Discussed as Constitutional Matters
- (7/19/23) DCist: D.C. Democratic Party Pushes To Keep Ranked Choice Voting And Open Primaries Off The Ballot
- (7/11/23) Washington Post Editorial Board: House GOP election bill expands dark money and curtails D.C. autonomy
- (7/7/23) Washington Examiner: House Republicans seek to ban ranked choice voting in DC elections
- (7/6/23) Daily Caller: Mike Lawler Introduces Bill To Ban Ranked-Choice Voting In DC
- (5/31/23) Washington Informer: D.C. Democrats Oppose Ranked-Choice Voting in City Elections
- (5/26/23) Washington Post Editorial Board: How to make D.C. government more representative
- (5/20/23) WTOP: Ballot initiative may bring major changes to DC voting
- (5/18/23) Washington Post: D.C. ranked-choice voting initiative could be headed to the ballot
- (5/18/23) DCist: New Ballot Initiative Proposes Bringing Ranked-Choice Voting And Open Primaries To D.C.
- (5/18/23) Washington City Paper: A New Ballot Initiative Could Bring Ranked-Choice Voting and Open Primaries to D.C. Expect a Big Fight
If you are a member of the media and would like to cover our effort to pass Ballot Initiative #83, please email Press@MakeAllVotesCountDC.org or fill out the form below: