November 6, 2012
Just Think How Much More Suspenseful It Would Be Around Here Today...
...if Rhode Island didn't award it's electoral votes on a winner take-all basis, unless a candidate exceeded 62.5% of the popular vote! Why 62.5%, you ask? Read the answer here; it will remain valid at least through the 2020 election.
Proportional allocation with winner-take-all above a certain threshold could be put into effect for the next Presidential election, requiring only the action of the Rhode Island legislature and no other -- meaning that folks concerned that Presidential candidates haven't been paying enough attention to RI, because of current rules for allocating electors, should be able to get behind this right away!
I would like to see the system where a voter lists his first choice, second choice, third choice, down the list, and there's runoff voting. It would make third party campaigns much more meaningful, and make it possible for people who can't stomach either major party candidate to have a voice.
I like the proposal to change the winner take all award of electoral votes; if adopted nationwide it would give incentive to candidates to campaign nationwide, and check the influence of the swing states. I'd love to see presidential campaigns swing through Texas and California.
Posted by: zelda at November 9, 2012 3:59 PM