“You meet them and you're like, ‘oh, wow, you're a good person trying to do the right thing, and there's nothing in it for you,’” says Andrew Yang, Founder and Co-Chair of the Forward Party. He’s referring to largely volunteer teams around the country that have raised the profile for election reform in 2024. “I mean, what could be more worthy of praise than that combination of attributes?” Yang was a relative unknown upon entering the 2020 Democratic Presidential primaries. But that did not last long. He energized young voters with his informal approach to campaigning and practical position on innovative policies, such as universal basic income.  “The reason I do what I do is because I don't have that positive an outlook as to what America's future looks like if we don't get our s%%# together,” says Yang, also an author and frequent commentator on major news networks. “Like it or not, the world's future is determined very much by what happens here in the United States.” Tune in to find out why Yang and the Forward Party support election reform in all its variations for 2024 and beyond. And why $200 million dollars spent on election reform, which is less than that spent on several Senate campaigns this year, could transform American politics for the better.  The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.

<description>“You meet them and you're like, ‘oh, wow, you're a good person trying to do the right thing, and there's nothing in it for you,’” says Andrew Yang, Founder and Co-Chair of the Forward Party. He’s referring to largely volunteer teams around the country that have raised the profile for election reform in 2024. “I mean, what could be more worthy of praise than that combination of attributes?”

Yang was a relative unknown upon entering the 2020 Democratic Presidential primaries. But that did not last long. He energized young voters with his informal approach to campaigning and practical position on innovative policies, such as universal basic income. 

“The reason I do what I do is because I don't have that positive an outlook as to what America's future looks like if we don't get our s%%# together,” says Yang, also an author and frequent commentator on major news networks. “Like it or not, the world's future is determined very much by what happens here in the United States.”

Tune in to find out why Yang and the Forward Party support election reform in all its variations for 2024 and beyond. And why $200 million dollars spent on election reform, which is less than that spent on several Senate campaigns this year, could transform American politics for the better. 

The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.</description>

Andrew Yang on Election Reform

“You meet them and you're like, ‘oh, wow, you're a good person trying to do the right thing, and there's nothing in it for you,’” says Andrew Yang, Founder and Co-Chair of the Forward Party. He’s referring to largely volunteer teams around the country that have raised the profile for election reform in 2024. “I mean, what could be more worthy of praise than that combination of attributes?”

Yang was a relative unknown upon entering the 2020 Democratic Presidential primaries. But that did not last long. He energized young voters with his informal approach to campaigning and practical position on innovative policies, such as universal basic income. 

“The reason I do what I do is because I don't have that positive an outlook as to what America's future looks like if we don't get our s%%# together,” says Yang, also an author and frequent commentator on major news networks. “Like it or not, the world's future is determined very much by what happens here in the United States.”

Tune in to find out why Yang and the Forward Party support election reform in all its variations for 2024 and beyond. And why $200 million dollars spent on election reform, which is less than that spent on several Senate campaigns this year, could transform American politics for the better. 

The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.

Transforming US Politics for $200 Million? Andrew Yang on Election Reform

“It’s a thrilling year. It’s a tense year. I am a believer that this is a marathon,” says Rob Richie, Co-Founder and longtime Director of FairVote, the nation’s foremost catalyst for ranked choice voting elections. “There's moments of excitement– of cresting hills, of victories and sometimes defeats.” In this Purple Principle episode, Richie recounts the highs and lows throughout the steady progression of ranked choice voting in US elections since co-founding FairVote three decades ago. For example, the successful implementation of RCV elections in Portland paved the way for the nation’s first statewide ballot passage by Maine voters in 2016. That was followed by Alaska as part of Top Four voting reforms in 2020.  “Alaska and Maine, interestingly, those two states are ones where independents have done particularly well,” says Richie. “We've had governors be elected in both states as independents, and they're states that were always on the reform radar.”  In 2024, ranked choice voting has moved off the radar and onto ballots in multiple states– as a stand alone reform in Oregon and as part of Top Four or Five election reforms in Nevada, Colorado and Idaho. In the same period, though, nearly a dozen GOP dominated state legislatures have outlawed RCV.  Does that make it critical for RCV to pass in multiple states this election year? Richie, now a Senior Advisor to Fairvote, thinks RCV has a logic and a momentum all its own aside from election results. “Younger Americans, 50% of them do not identify with the major parties at this point,” says Richie. “So we’re going to get away from two choice politics and Ranked Choice Voting will be part of that. But whether it happens doesn't depend on November.” Tune in to learn more about the first thirty years of RCV in the USA, from college campuses to city, town and county elections, and now to multiple state ballots in the same election cycle. And check out <a href="http://fairvote.org">Fairvote.org</a> for much more info on RCV.  The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production; original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.

<description>“It’s a thrilling year. It’s a tense year. I am a believer that this is a marathon,” says Rob Richie, Co-Founder and longtime Director of FairVote, the nation’s foremost catalyst for ranked choice voting elections. “There's moments of excitement– of cresting hills, of victories and sometimes defeats.”

In this Purple Principle episode, Richie recounts the highs and lows throughout the steady progression of ranked choice voting in US elections since co-founding FairVote three decades ago. For example, the successful implementation of RCV elections in Portland paved the way for the nation’s first statewide ballot passage by Maine voters in 2016. That was followed by Alaska as part of Top Four voting reforms in 2020. 

“Alaska and Maine, interestingly, those two states are ones where independents have done particularly well,” says Richie. “We've had governors be elected in both states as independents, and they're states that were always on the reform radar.” 

In 2024, ranked choice voting has moved off the radar and onto ballots in multiple states– as a stand alone reform in Oregon and as part of Top Four or Five election reforms in Nevada, Colorado and Idaho. In the same period, though, nearly a dozen GOP dominated state legislatures have outlawed RCV. 

Does that make it critical for RCV to pass in multiple states this election year? Richie, now a Senior Advisor to Fairvote, thinks RCV has a logic and a momentum all its own aside from election results.

“Younger Americans, 50% of them do not identify with the major parties at this point,” says Richie. “So we’re going to get away from two choice politics and Ranked Choice Voting will be part of that. But whether it happens doesn't depend on November.”

Tune in to learn more about the first thirty years of RCV in the USA, from college campuses to city, town and county elections, and now to multiple state ballots in the same election cycle. And check out Fairvote.org for much more info on RCV. 

The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production; original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.</description>

Ranked Choice Voting’s First Three Decades

“It’s a thrilling year. It’s a tense year. I am a believer that this is a marathon,” says Rob Richie, Co-Founder and longtime Director of FairVote, the nation’s foremost catalyst for ranked choice voting elections. “There's moments of excitement– of cresting hills, of victories and sometimes defeats.”

In this Purple Principle episode, Richie recounts the highs and lows throughout the steady progression of ranked choice voting in US elections since co-founding FairVote three decades ago. For example, the successful implementation of RCV elections in Portland paved the way for the nation’s first statewide ballot passage by Maine voters in 2016. That was followed by Alaska as part of Top Four voting reforms in 2020. 

“Alaska and Maine, interestingly, those two states are ones where independents have done particularly well,” says Richie. “We've had governors be elected in both states as independents, and they're states that were always on the reform radar.” 

In 2024, ranked choice voting has moved off the radar and onto ballots in multiple states– as a stand alone reform in Oregon and as part of Top Four or Five election reforms in Nevada, Colorado and Idaho. In the same period, though, nearly a dozen GOP dominated state legislatures have outlawed RCV. 

Does that make it critical for RCV to pass in multiple states this election year? Richie, now a Senior Advisor to Fairvote, thinks RCV has a logic and a momentum all its own aside from election results.

“Younger Americans, 50% of them do not identify with the major parties at this point,” says Richie. “So we’re going to get away from two choice politics and Ranked Choice Voting will be part of that. But whether it happens doesn't depend on November.”

Tune in to learn more about the first thirty years of RCV in the USA, from college campuses to city, town and county elections, and now to multiple state ballots in the same election cycle. And check out Fairvote.org for much more info on RCV. 

The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production; original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.

Reform Milestones with FairVote’s Rob Richie: Ranked Choice Voting’s First Three Decades

In 2020, Alaskans passed a first-in-the-nation voting system which helped energize similar reform efforts around the country. In 2024, Alaska voters are now presented with a ballot measure to repeal this same Final or “Top Four” system that includes a unified open primary of all candidates plus a ranked choice general election. Meanwhile, voters in Nevada, Idaho, Colorado and other states consider measures to pass major elements of  the “Alaska model.” This Purple Principle episode features discussion with election law expert and reform advocate Scott Kendall, a major catalyst behind “Top Four” in the frontier state. He explains the impetus behind the initial reform in terms of the perverse motivations elections have traditionally provided to candidates and elected representatives. “We have set up a system that gives all the wrong incentives and then we're surprised when people act on those incentives,” says Kendall, a former chief of staff to independent Governor Bill Walker. “It's as though a teacher graded their students' success on how much they misbehaved in class. And we wanted to change that.” By contrast, Republican state Senator Robert Myers stands in favor of the repeal effort, noting the longstanding Alaska tradition of forming bipartisan coalitions in the state legislature. “I think  this a problem in search of a solution,” Myers told us at the 2024 Alaska State Fair. “The way it was passed… a lot of people voting for campaign finance changes didn't realize they were voting to put in a jungle primary and ranked choice voting general election.” New System, Long Tradition? Independent Alaska House Representatives Calvin Schrage and Rebecca Himschoot see the Top Four or Ranked Choice Voting system differently. They think it will preserve and strengthen Alaska’s less partisan, more pragmatic political tradition. “Going door to door on my campaign, I'm also talking to voters a lot about the initiative,” says Schrage, the House Minority Leader representing parts of Anchorage. “I think returning to the old system further empowers extreme partisan individuals to choose candidates for us.” Prior to election, Rep. Himschoot was a career educator with a window on family and community challenges in her historically low-income southeast Alaska district. She doubts she would have entered politics without the Top Four  system. “It's a planetary test,” says Himschoot. “If we can keep open primaries and ranked choice voting, we have a chance at our state getting to a better place.” Tune in for Part Two of this exploration of the frontiers of election reform. How did Alaska become the North Star for other reform efforts around the country? What seminal events laid the groundwork for Top Four  passage in 2020 and a first full set of elections in 2022? And what are the issues surrounding potential repeal of Top Four or Ranked Choice Voting just four years after initial passage?  The Purple Principles is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.

<description>In 2020, Alaskans passed a first-in-the-nation voting system which helped energize similar reform efforts around the country. In 2024, Alaska voters are now presented with a ballot measure to repeal this same Final or “Top Four” system that includes a unified open primary of all candidates plus a ranked choice general election. Meanwhile, voters in Nevada, Idaho, Colorado and other states consider measures to pass major elements of  the “Alaska model.”

This Purple Principle episode features discussion with election law expert and reform advocate Scott Kendall, a major catalyst behind “Top Four” in the frontier state. He explains the impetus behind the initial reform in terms of the perverse motivations elections have traditionally provided to candidates and elected representatives.

“We have set up a system that gives all the wrong incentives and then we're surprised when people act on those incentives,” says Kendall, a former chief of staff to independent Governor Bill Walker. “It's as though a teacher graded their students' success on how much they misbehaved in class. And we wanted to change that.”

By contrast, Republican state Senator Robert Myers stands in favor of the repeal effort, noting the longstanding Alaska tradition of forming bipartisan coalitions in the state legislature. “I think  this a problem in search of a solution,” Myers told us at the 2024 Alaska State Fair. “The way it was passed… a lot of people voting for campaign finance changes didn't realize they were voting to put in a jungle primary and ranked choice voting general election.”

New System, Long Tradition?

Independent Alaska House Representatives Calvin Schrage and Rebecca Himschoot see the Top Four or Ranked Choice Voting system differently. They think it will preserve and strengthen Alaska’s less partisan, more pragmatic political tradition.

“Going door to door on my campaign, I'm also talking to voters a lot about the initiative,” says Schrage, the House Minority Leader representing parts of Anchorage. “I think returning to the old system further empowers extreme partisan individuals to choose candidates for us.”

Prior to election, Rep. Himschoot was a career educator with a window on family and community challenges in her historically low-income southeast Alaska district. She doubts she would have entered politics without the Top Four  system. “It's a planetary test,” says Himschoot. “If we can keep open primaries and ranked choice voting, we have a chance at our state getting to a better place.”

Tune in for Part Two of this exploration of the frontiers of election reform. How did Alaska become the North Star for other reform efforts around the country? What seminal events laid the groundwork for Top Four  passage in 2020 and a first full set of elections in 2022? And what are the issues surrounding potential repeal of Top Four or Ranked Choice Voting just four years after initial passage? 

The Purple Principles is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney. </description>

Will Alaskans Preserve Top Four Voting?

In 2020, Alaskans passed a first-in-the-nation voting system which helped energize similar reform efforts around the country. In 2024, Alaska voters are now presented with a ballot measure to repeal this same Final or “Top Four” system that includes a unified open primary of all candidates plus a ranked choice general election. Meanwhile, voters in Nevada, Idaho, Colorado and other states consider measures to pass major elements of  the “Alaska model.”

This Purple Principle episode features discussion with election law expert and reform advocate Scott Kendall, a major catalyst behind “Top Four” in the frontier state. He explains the impetus behind the initial reform in terms of the perverse motivations elections have traditionally provided to candidates and elected representatives.

“We have set up a system that gives all the wrong incentives and then we're surprised when people act on those incentives,” says Kendall, a former chief of staff to independent Governor Bill Walker. “It's as though a teacher graded their students' success on how much they misbehaved in class. And we wanted to change that.”

By contrast, Republican state Senator Robert Myers stands in favor of the repeal effort, noting the longstanding Alaska tradition of forming bipartisan coalitions in the state legislature. “I think  this a problem in search of a solution,” Myers told us at the 2024 Alaska State Fair. “The way it was passed… a lot of people voting for campaign finance changes didn't realize they were voting to put in a jungle primary and ranked choice voting general election.”

New System, Long Tradition?

Independent Alaska House Representatives Calvin Schrage and Rebecca Himschoot see the Top Four or Ranked Choice Voting system differently. They think it will preserve and strengthen Alaska’s less partisan, more pragmatic political tradition.

“Going door to door on my campaign, I'm also talking to voters a lot about the initiative,” says Schrage, the House Minority Leader representing parts of Anchorage. “I think returning to the old system further empowers extreme partisan individuals to choose candidates for us.”

Prior to election, Rep. Himschoot was a career educator with a window on family and community challenges in her historically low-income southeast Alaska district. She doubts she would have entered politics without the Top Four  system. “It's a planetary test,” says Himschoot. “If we can keep open primaries and ranked choice voting, we have a chance at our state getting to a better place.”

Tune in for Part Two of this exploration of the frontiers of election reform. How did Alaska become the North Star for other reform efforts around the country? What seminal events laid the groundwork for Top Four  passage in 2020 and a first full set of elections in 2022? And what are the issues surrounding potential repeal of Top Four or Ranked Choice Voting just four years after initial passage? 

The Purple Principles is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney. 

Frontiers of Election Reform (Part 2): Will Alaskans Preserve Top Four Voting?

“The notion of getting rid of a closed primary system in Alaska appealed to me instantly,” says former Alaska House Speaker Bryce Edgmon who has represented Bristol Bay and parts of the Aleutian Islands for nearly two decades. “It overrode right there almost on the spot any trepidation I might have about having to rank candidates or anything else that would eventually become part of the ballot measure that narrowly passed in Alaska.” Rep. Edgmon is referring to Alaska’s first-in-nation passage of a final or top four voting system with a unified open primary plus ranked choice general election. In this episode we examine the dynamics of the first state legislature in the country to have been elected by this system in 2022, even as a ballot measure to repeal the system has been put before Alaska voters in 2024. We also discuss the dynamics of the Alaska legislature with Anchorage Daily News Reporter, Iris Samuels, and University of Alaska Southeast Political Science Professor, Dr. Glenn Wright.   “Alaska is fairly unique in that even before this election reform, we've had bipartisan and tri-partisan coalitions in the House and Senate,” says Samuels, who covers the Juneau State House. “But it has reinforced that phenomenon and made it possible for elected officials to envision doing that and not experience repercussions from within their party and from voters.”  “If you talk to incumbent politicians,” explains Dr. Wright, “ they will tell you that they're less concerned about the primary challenge now– that before the reform that was in the back of their mind. And they were thinking not about what do voters in my district want but what do party primary voters in my district want.” AFL-CIO President Joelle Hall has also observed what might be a similar deepening of Alaska’s cross-partisan tendencies in the two years since passage of the top four reform.  “One of the ways that we are really different is that we have always come to a bipartisan coalition at the end of every decade,” observes Hall, a legislative lobbyist for nearly three decades. “Redistricting happens. Then slowly the two parties claw back to roughly even. So it's accelerated what is already a normal path in Alaska where we gravitate towards these coalitions. But our final guest on this first of two Alaska episodes, Rep. Alyse Galvin of Anchorage, cautions that these post reform dynamics have not yet translated into legislative action. That’s partially because senior house leadership has blocked several bipartisan legislative efforts, while others were vetoed at the executive level.  “if we don't allow this to play out a bit more, I'd say one more cycle, maybe two,” says Galvin, previously a two time candidate for the US House, ”then we're really missing a big chance to get things done that will give Alaskans hope.” Tune in for five different perspectives on the first legislature in the country elected by final or top four voting as citizens in four other US states (NV, ID, CO &amp; MT) consider passing the Alaskan model for less divisive elections toward more collaborative governance.  The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.

<description>“The notion of getting rid of a closed primary system in Alaska appealed to me instantly,” says former Alaska House Speaker Bryce Edgmon who has represented Bristol Bay and parts of the Aleutian Islands for nearly two decades. “It overrode right there almost on the spot any trepidation I might have about having to rank candidates or anything else that would eventually become part of the ballot measure that narrowly passed in Alaska.”

Rep. Edgmon is referring to Alaska’s first-in-nation passage of a final or top four voting system with a unified open primary plus ranked choice general election. In this episode we examine the dynamics of the first state legislature in the country to have been elected by this system in 2022, even as a ballot measure to repeal the system has been put before Alaska voters in 2024.

We also discuss the dynamics of the Alaska legislature with Anchorage Daily News Reporter, Iris Samuels, and University of Alaska Southeast Political Science Professor, Dr. Glenn Wright. 

 “Alaska is fairly unique in that even before this election reform, we've had bipartisan and tri-partisan coalitions in the House and Senate,” says Samuels, who covers the Juneau State House. “But it has reinforced that phenomenon and made it possible for elected officials to envision doing that and not experience repercussions from within their party and from voters.” 

“If you talk to incumbent politicians,” explains Dr. Wright, “ they will tell you that they're less concerned about the primary challenge now– that before the reform that was in the back of their mind. And they were thinking not about what do voters in my district want but what do party primary voters in my district want.”

AFL-CIO President Joelle Hall has also observed what might be a similar deepening of Alaska’s cross-partisan tendencies in the two years since passage of the top four reform. 

“One of the ways that we are really different is that we have always come to a bipartisan coalition at the end of every decade,” observes Hall, a legislative lobbyist for nearly three decades. “Redistricting happens. Then slowly the two parties claw back to roughly even. So it's accelerated what is already a normal path in Alaska where we gravitate towards these coalitions.

But our final guest on this first of two Alaska episodes, Rep. Alyse Galvin of Anchorage, cautions that these post reform dynamics have not yet translated into legislative action. That’s partially because senior house leadership has blocked several bipartisan legislative efforts, while others were vetoed at the executive level. 

“if we don't allow this to play out a bit more, I'd say one more cycle, maybe two,” says Galvin, previously a two time candidate for the US House, ”then we're really missing a big chance to get things done that will give Alaskans hope.”

Tune in for five different perspectives on the first legislature in the country elected by final or top four voting as citizens in four other US states (NV, ID, CO &amp; MT) consider passing the Alaskan model for less divisive elections toward more collaborative governance. 

The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.</description>

5 Views on the Alaska Legislature (Part One) 

“The notion of getting rid of a closed primary system in Alaska appealed to me instantly,” says former Alaska House Speaker Bryce Edgmon who has represented Bristol Bay and parts of the Aleutian Islands for nearly two decades. “It overrode right there almost on the spot any trepidation I might have about having to rank candidates or anything else that would eventually become part of the ballot measure that narrowly passed in Alaska.”

Rep. Edgmon is referring to Alaska’s first-in-nation passage of a final or top four voting system with a unified open primary plus ranked choice general election. In this episode we examine the dynamics of the first state legislature in the country to have been elected by this system in 2022, even as a ballot measure to repeal the system has been put before Alaska voters in 2024.

We also discuss the dynamics of the Alaska legislature with Anchorage Daily News Reporter, Iris Samuels, and University of Alaska Southeast Political Science Professor, Dr. Glenn Wright. 

 “Alaska is fairly unique in that even before this election reform, we've had bipartisan and tri-partisan coalitions in the House and Senate,” says Samuels, who covers the Juneau State House. “But it has reinforced that phenomenon and made it possible for elected officials to envision doing that and not experience repercussions from within their party and from voters.” 

“If you talk to incumbent politicians,” explains Dr. Wright, “ they will tell you that they're less concerned about the primary challenge now– that before the reform that was in the back of their mind. And they were thinking not about what do voters in my district want but what do party primary voters in my district want.”

AFL-CIO President Joelle Hall has also observed what might be a similar deepening of Alaska’s cross-partisan tendencies in the two years since passage of the top four reform. 

“One of the ways that we are really different is that we have always come to a bipartisan coalition at the end of every decade,” observes Hall, a legislative lobbyist for nearly three decades. “Redistricting happens. Then slowly the two parties claw back to roughly even. So it's accelerated what is already a normal path in Alaska where we gravitate towards these coalitions.

But our final guest on this first of two Alaska episodes, Rep. Alyse Galvin of Anchorage, cautions that these post reform dynamics have not yet translated into legislative action. That’s partially because senior house leadership has blocked several bipartisan legislative efforts, while others were vetoed at the executive level. 

“if we don't allow this to play out a bit more, I'd say one more cycle, maybe two,” says Galvin, previously a two time candidate for the US House, ”then we're really missing a big chance to get things done that will give Alaskans hope.”

Tune in for five different perspectives on the first legislature in the country elected by final or top four voting as citizens in four other US states (NV, ID, CO & MT) consider passing the Alaskan model for less divisive elections toward more collaborative governance. 

The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.

Frontiers of Election Reform: 5 Views on the Alaska Legislature (Part One) 

Election reform is officially on the ballot for voter approval in Colorado this year. This “Top Four” voting system is similar to the Alaska model of a unified open primary plus ranked choice general election. But there is a catch to this Colorado ballot measure, and it came via the state legislature in the final moments of the 2024 session.  “Well, the last couple of days of the legislative session are very hectic,” says Jeni Arndt, a three term Democratic House Member in Colorado before her election as non-partisan Mayor of Fort Collins. “And you don't know every amendment that you're voting on in the last few days. But this was clearly an orchestrated effort to put in a poison pill.” The amendment in question requires at least 12 Colorado municipalities to pass and implement ranked choice voting elections before the state can do so. Thus it could delay citizen-will on this issue until at least 2028, even if voters overwhelmingly pass the initiative in November.  “When our legislature waits and passes a law with very little debate that no one basically really knew that that was in the bill,” says Republican State Senator Barbara Kirkmeyer, “that's wrong.”  Senator Kirkmeyer has not yet taken a position on the Top Four voting in Colorado. Both nationally and in Colorado her party has come out against any form of ranked choice voting. By contrast, Democratic opposition or concern around election reform has been more nuanced. “I think the folks who brought the amendment, I've worked closely with them on lots of different things,” says Democratic Senator Chris Hansen, a former House Member and former candidate for Mayor in Denver. “I think they were trying to make sure there was not an implementation issue with ranked choice if that moves forward in November.” Executive Director of Denver-based Unite America, Nick Troiano, is not so sure. He sees similar motivations behind both GOP and Democratic tactics in preventing or delaying these increasingly popular reform measures. “The fact that they went out of their way in a midnight effort to try and undermine the people's will not only demonstrates the potential impact of this reform,” says Troiano, author of The Primary Solution. “But it also demonstrates the problem that we're trying to solve, which is politicians are largely in it for their self-interest.” Was this Colorado amendment a self-interested poison pill or an effort to make RCV elections go smoothly once implemented? Tune in for three viewpoints on this question and make up your own independent mind. And stay tuned for more upcoming episodes on the various ways party and legislative leaders in multiple states begin pushing back on nonpartisan election reform momentum in 2024, a potentially historic year for depolarizing ballot initiatives. It’s all part of our season long series on state and district level reform from Washington DC to Alaska with a record number of states in between, including Idaho, Nevada, South Dakota, Arizona, Oregon and now Colorado.  The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.

<description>Election reform is officially on the ballot for voter approval in Colorado this year. This “Top Four” voting system is similar to the Alaska model of a unified open primary plus ranked choice general election. But there is a catch to this Colorado ballot measure, and it came via the state legislature in the final moments of the 2024 session. 

“Well, the last couple of days of the legislative session are very hectic,” says Jeni Arndt, a three term Democratic House Member in Colorado before her election as non-partisan Mayor of Fort Collins. “And you don't know every amendment that you're voting on in the last few days. But this was clearly an orchestrated effort to put in a poison pill.”

The amendment in question requires at least 12 Colorado municipalities to pass and implement ranked choice voting elections before the state can do so. Thus it could delay citizen-will on this issue until at least 2028, even if voters overwhelmingly pass the initiative in November. 

“When our legislature waits and passes a law with very little debate that no one basically really knew that that was in the bill,” says Republican State Senator Barbara Kirkmeyer, “that's wrong.” 

Senator Kirkmeyer has not yet taken a position on the Top Four voting in Colorado. Both nationally and in Colorado her party has come out against any form of ranked choice voting. By contrast, Democratic opposition or concern around election reform has been more nuanced.

“I think the folks who brought the amendment, I've worked closely with them on lots of different things,” says Democratic Senator Chris Hansen, a former House Member and former candidate for Mayor in Denver. “I think they were trying to make sure there was not an implementation issue with ranked choice if that moves forward in November.”

Executive Director of Denver-based Unite America, Nick Troiano, is not so sure. He sees similar motivations behind both GOP and Democratic tactics in preventing or delaying these increasingly popular reform measures.

“The fact that they went out of their way in a midnight effort to try and undermine the people's will not only demonstrates the potential impact of this reform,” says Troiano, author of The Primary Solution. “But it also demonstrates the problem that we're trying to solve, which is politicians are largely in it for their self-interest.”

Was this Colorado amendment a self-interested poison pill or an effort to make RCV elections go smoothly once implemented? Tune in for three viewpoints on this question and make up your own independent mind.

And stay tuned for more upcoming episodes on the various ways party and legislative leaders in multiple states begin pushing back on nonpartisan election reform momentum in 2024, a potentially historic year for depolarizing ballot initiatives. It’s all part of our season long series on state and district level reform from Washington DC to Alaska with a record number of states in between, including Idaho, Nevada, South Dakota, Arizona, Oregon and now Colorado. 

The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.</description>

Colorado's Top Four Election Reform

Election reform is officially on the ballot for voter approval in Colorado this year. This “Top Four” voting system is similar to the Alaska model of a unified open primary plus ranked choice general election. But there is a catch to this Colorado ballot measure, and it came via the state legislature in the final moments of the 2024 session. 

“Well, the last couple of days of the legislative session are very hectic,” says Jeni Arndt, a three term Democratic House Member in Colorado before her election as non-partisan Mayor of Fort Collins. “And you don't know every amendment that you're voting on in the last few days. But this was clearly an orchestrated effort to put in a poison pill.”

The amendment in question requires at least 12 Colorado municipalities to pass and implement ranked choice voting elections before the state can do so. Thus it could delay citizen-will on this issue until at least 2028, even if voters overwhelmingly pass the initiative in November. 

“When our legislature waits and passes a law with very little debate that no one basically really knew that that was in the bill,” says Republican State Senator Barbara Kirkmeyer, “that's wrong.” 

Senator Kirkmeyer has not yet taken a position on the Top Four voting in Colorado. Both nationally and in Colorado her party has come out against any form of ranked choice voting. By contrast, Democratic opposition or concern around election reform has been more nuanced.

“I think the folks who brought the amendment, I've worked closely with them on lots of different things,” says Democratic Senator Chris Hansen, a former House Member and former candidate for Mayor in Denver. “I think they were trying to make sure there was not an implementation issue with ranked choice if that moves forward in November.”

Executive Director of Denver-based Unite America, Nick Troiano, is not so sure. He sees similar motivations behind both GOP and Democratic tactics in preventing or delaying these increasingly popular reform measures.

“The fact that they went out of their way in a midnight effort to try and undermine the people's will not only demonstrates the potential impact of this reform,” says Troiano, author of The Primary Solution. “But it also demonstrates the problem that we're trying to solve, which is politicians are largely in it for their self-interest.”

Was this Colorado amendment a self-interested poison pill or an effort to make RCV elections go smoothly once implemented? Tune in for three viewpoints on this question and make up your own independent mind.

And stay tuned for more upcoming episodes on the various ways party and legislative leaders in multiple states begin pushing back on nonpartisan election reform momentum in 2024, a potentially historic year for depolarizing ballot initiatives. It’s all part of our season long series on state and district level reform from Washington DC to Alaska with a record number of states in between, including Idaho, Nevada, South Dakota, Arizona, Oregon and now Colorado. 

The Purple Principle is a Fluent Knowledge production. Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.

When Legislatures Act Before Citizens Vote: Colorado's Top Four Election Reform

Nonpartisan podcast for independent-minded Americans exploring the perils of partisanship in U.S. politics, society and daily life.
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