Vote Yes on D.C.'s Initiative 83

Initiative 83 lets independents vote in D.C. primaries, where most elections are decided

Ballots for Washington, D.C. voters will be sent out today via mail, and I hope you will join me in flipping your ballot over to the back and voting YES on Initiative 83. All registered voters will receive a mail ballot, and same-day registration with voting is available at polling places. The ballot initiative would change local elections in the District in two main ways:

1. Voters registered as independent could vote for the Democratic nominee in June primaries, where most of D.C.’s local elections are decided

2. Voters would rank their choices, and on election night, the winning candidate is determined with a requirement to receive 50%+1 of total votes

The campaign for Initiative 83 has attracted diverse supporters, including longtime residents of the District and numerous civically active neighbors who participate already but are prohibited from voting in our June primaries if we don’t associate with the nationally-focused Democratic Party. Ranked Choice Voting and open primaries have been shown to elect more women and people of color. The potential for winners coming from behind with 2nd and 3rd-choice votes inspires more positive and solutions-focused campaigning. Passionate residents may disagree with a candidate on an issue, but they’re often worth the secondary choices when they show they are coalition builders and — frankly — reasonable people.

Let’s go back to basics: it should be as easy as possible to vote, especially in the local elections, determining how most residents are directly affected by the government. Our voting systems should make it so the highest-turnout day on the election calendar is also where most of the races on the ballot are determined. Initiative 83 makes it so that the still-influential June primaries will be more open to residents just beginning their civic involvement. The ranked-choice voting scheme will make it so that whoever takes each seat on D.C. Council and Mayor has to win a majority of the vote. Our current “first past the post” method is really dumb.

I am angered by the underhanded and devious tactics of D.C.’s small, picayune cohort of Democratic Party influencers who are trying to get I-83 thrown off the ballot by changing the rules mid-way through the election. It is fair to argue that ranked-choice voting is more confusing than the old-school method of picking the least bad candidates. Increasing turnout under a new system will take more widespread and effective voter education and nudges. However, if we return to the first principle of getting more people to register and to vote — especially in these local elections — the current system in D.C. delivers democratic accountability to a paltry few of my neighbors.

I prefer something called “Jungle Primaries,” which are best in single-party-dominant places like D.C. However, I-83 is a good reform step while the District is constrained by the Home Rule Act. Please vote yes on I-83 this autumn.

DISCLAIMER: All opinions and analyses in this newsletter are those solely of Gordon Chaffin and do not represent his employer or community groups with which he’s affiliated.