Instant run-off voting. Proportional representation. Why haven't these been in place all along?
An interesting Reuters article discusses efforts by Krist Novoselic (surprisingly, the former bassist for the band Nirvana) to improve the American voting system. Instant run-offs would allow voters to vote for more than one candidate and rank them in their order of preference. Proportional representation "would allocate legislative seats based on the percentage of votes a party receives."
Adoption of these ideas is such a no-brainer that it makes me scratch my head about why they weren't designed into the system in the first place and why they're going to face such an uphill battle for acceptance. Might I be permitted a quiet "duh"? Why should all of the seats of a district go to the winning party? Why shouldn't I be allowed to vote for a first choice, second choice, third choice?
When it comes to voting, we really are still living in the eighteenth century.
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