Welcome to the FairVoteVermont website. FairVoteVermont is a nonpartisan coalition of Vermonters who are urging adoption of Instant Runoff Voting (IRV).

Instant Runoff Voting means that you rank the candidates in order according to your preference -- 1, 2, 3 and so on.

With Instant Runoff Voting we will always know the will of the majority of Vermont Voters and we will eliminate the problems associated with winning office on a plurality.

To learn more or get involved contact us at:
vt@instantrunoff.com or call 802-864-8382

Five Page Document that refutes Attorney-General Sorrell’s recent testimony about the Constitutionality of IRV (Adobe PDF Format)

Attorney-General Sorrell’s analysis is flawed on several major points. He fails to give recognition to the intent and overriding goal the framers in section 47 (Baker v. State), he fails to correctly apply the precedent of the Temple v. Mead decision, and he ignores the liberal standard accorded statutes in assessing their constitutionality (State v. Reed and Gross v. Gates). Instant runoff voting would almost certainly be found constitutional by the Vermont Supreme Court.

Twelve Page Document that outlines the legal questions surrounding IRV and supports the approach of S.22.

IRV information Flyer regarding S.22
(Adobe PDF Format)

click to listen online Listen now (Windows Media Player Required)
Vermont Public Radio's Switchboard (news call-in show) featuring Instant Runoff Voting - Bob Kinzel hosts a discussion with guests: Paul Burns of VPIRG and former Williston Representative Michael Quaid.

Final Report of the
Vermont Commission to Study Instant Runoff Voting


Further Information:

Links to the Center for Voting and Democracy IRV site:

 

Why Should we use
Instant Runoff Voting?

The purpose of an election is to record public opinion and place into office those candidates who most closely conform to the public's wishes. If an election fails to place the most popular candidate in office, the election system has produced the "wrong" result.

One way to manipulate the outcome of a typical election is to introduce an extra candidate. Many times, an additional candidate has effected the outcome of an election by splitting the support of the more popular candidate. Perhaps the most famous example (before the debacle called Florida) is from the 1912 presidential election.

This tactic is more difficult when there are runoffs because the run-off gives the split group the opportunity to come together again on a common candidate. But it is still possible to split a group enough that neither candidate makes it to the run-offs. It is more difficult, but still possible.

Instant Runoff Voting (IRV):
How it works

IRV uses the ranked choice ballot. With this ballot you rank the candidates in order according to your preference -- 1, 2, 3 and so on. When the ballots are tabulated, your vote is applied to the candidate you ranked first. If no candidate receives a majority, the candidate who received the least number of votes is eliminated, and a "run-off" tabulation is done including the remaining candidates. In the run-off, your vote still goes to the candidate you ranked first, unless that was the candidate that was eliminated. In the latter case, your vote goes to the candidate you ranked second. This routine of eliminating the lowest candidate and recounting the votes continues until one candidate has a majority of the votes.

Each time, your vote is applied to the candidate you ranked highest who is still in the running. This way, you can vote for the candidate you like best (even if that candidate has no chance of winning) without the threat that you are leaving the decision up to the other voters who vote for the most popular candidates.

Your ballot stays in the counting process even after your favorite candidate is eliminated. The final decision who wins the election is made by all the voters, not just the ones who choose the mainstream candidates first.