Electoral Reform

By Denise Munro Robb

Electoral Reform

The year 2000 brought the subject of electoral reform to the forefront of most people's consciousness. Hanging chads, forgotten ballots and civil rights abuses were on the news daily. The sad truth uncovered is that this is not new to our democracy. Many things can be done to create greater representation.

When elected I intend to work for:

• Instant runoff voting as a system of electing city council members. This is a method in which you rank candidates for city council, 1 being your favorite + all the way to the end, if you desire. This prevents the need for a primary and secondary election which can cost over half a million dollars of taxpayer money. It also prevents voters from having to choose between the "lesser of two evils." You are free to vote for the person you really want, and not worrying that you will be electing your least favorite candidate.
• Computer touch screen voting, with printouts to prevent the Republican Party who owns the machines from stealing the election again and also so you can see how you voted and be sure it is accurate, will be an excellent addition to the City of Los Angeles. A pilot program for this has already been implemented with great success.
• Proportional representation for neighborhood councils to prevent discrimination against people of color, various backgrounds, ethnicities, sexual preferences, etc. from occurring. Proportional representation ensures that all gro