Referendum/Initiative Review and Ranked Choice Voting

At the March 23, 2006 meeting of the Pierce County Charter Review Commission, the Commission selected the issues of Referendum and Initiative review and Ranked Choice Voting as issues for discussion in the upcoming meetings.

Referendum and Initiative

Since the adoption of the Pierce County Charter, there have been very few referenda and initiatives qualify for the ballot at the county level. This has been in an environment where several initiatives qualify for the statewide ballot each year. This is an indication that our county level signature requirements are too high and discourage voter participation in the political process.

Ranked Choice Voting

The state legislature, the courts and the state political parties combined to do away with our blanket primary and move to a Montana-style primary. Through the statewide initiative process, voters were given a chance to express their opinion about the Montana-style primary and voiced a desire to change to something else, the Cajun primary (or the top 2 system). The courts, also, threw out the Cajun primary.

Many Pierce County citizens testified before the Commission about their desire to move away from the Montana-style primary to use Ranked Choice Voting to elect our county level officials. The Commission will be considering a proposal to do so over the next few weeks.