OPINION: Changes to elections, City Hall, could be great for Portland

Published 9:43 am Wednesday, October 23, 2024

Government for and by the people has been more of a goal than a reality for those of us historically left out of the governing process.

Whether it’s because of who we are or what we look like, or where we live or how much money we make, we have too often been shut out of a system that should reflect the voters who put our leaders in office. But for far too long, too many of us have not seen our communities fairly represented in Portland’s government.

That’s about to change.

In 2022, Portland voters approved seismic changes to the way we elect our leaders and how our local government will function. The Portland City Council will be expanded to 12 members with three members each coming from four geographically based districts. Portland’s east side, home to a diverse population frequently ignored by city leaders, will, for the first time in the city’s history, be guaranteed a seat at the table.

It’s not just those on the east side who will benefit from these changes — all Portlanders will. That’s because starting with this election, Portland will use a type of ranked choice voting that gives voters more power and more choices when it comes time to cast our ballots.

Ranked choice voting is a simple improvement to our elections that is easy to use and understand. With ranked choice voting, you get to vote for your favorite candidate and you can rank your back-up choices, too. Although this is an easy-to-use system, it is new to Portlanders. That is why the city has teamed up with a number of community-based organizations to introduce voters to ranked choice voting, which will be used to elect the city council, the mayor and city auditor.

Ranked choice voting isn’t new to Oregon. Benton County voters approved it in 2016 and use it to elect their county commissioners. People in Corvallis, the county seat, liked it so much their city council voted to use it to elect both the mayor and the council. Ranked choice voting does not have an ideology; it elects people who are most representative of the communities they are from. Using ranked choice voting in 2022, New York City elected a city council that, for the first time ,was a majority of women and people of color. And ranked choice voting finds support not only in “blue” states. It is also used in Utah, in Virginia and statewide in Maine and Alaska. Voters who have used ranked choice voting find it easy to use and they prefer it to the way we vote now.

This is an exciting time not just for Portland but for all of Oregon, which is on the brink of an historic expansion of our democracy. Measure 117, which could bring ranked choice voting to federal and statewide elections, is on the November ballot. The passage of Measure 117 will be another step forward in creating a democracy that works for all of us, not just for the special interests who have dominated politics for far too long. All of us want our voices heard and Measure 117 will give us the power to vote for who we want, how we want.

The City Club of Portland and the League of Women Voters of Oregon, which are known for their extensive analysis of issues before taking a position, support Measure 117 along with community-based groups like the Urban League and Next Up Action Fund. In fact, over 125 organizations and small businesses endorse Measure 117. One reason Measure 117 has earned so much support is because of how campaigns have changed in places that use ranked choice voting: candidates do better with this system when they reach out to as many voters as possible, focus on the issues and avoid attacking their opponents. Under our current system, candidates benefit when they appeal to a narrow and highly partisan base. Ranked choice voting changes that.

Measure 117 is an opportunity we refuse to let pass by — because we know that democracy works best when people, of all cultures, faiths and backgrounds, have their voices heard. It is time that government by the people became a reality for all people.