Proposition 131 is Colorado’s latest attempt to change how elections work by implementing an open, nonpartisan primary system and using ranked-choice voting (RCV) for general elections. Supporters say it’s a way to make elections more inclusive and fair, but opponents argue it’s complicated, expensive, and doesn’t solve the problems they claim it will. Let’s dig in.
What Is Proposition 131?
Proposition 131 aims to establish a “Top-Four” primary system, where all candidates—regardless of party—appear on the same ballot. The top four vote-getters advance to the general election, where ranked-choice voting kicks in. This system lets voters rank candidates in order of preference; if no candidate gets a majority, the lowest-ranked candidate is eliminated, and votes are redistributed until someone gets over 50%.
And the text you’ll see on your ballot reads
Shall there be a change to the Colorado Revised Statutes creating new election processes for certain federal and state offices, and, in connection therewith, creating a new all-candidate primary election for U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, governor, attorney general, secretary of state, treasurer, CU board of regents, state board of education, and the Colorado state legislature; allowing voters to vote for any one candidate per office, regardless of the voter’s or candidate’s political party affiliation; providing that the four candidates for each office who receive the most votes advance to the general election; and in the general election, allowing voters to rank candidates for each office on their ballot, adopting a process for how the ranked votes are tallied, and determining the winner to be the candidate with the highest number of votes in the final tally?
What’s the Point of Proposition 131?
The proponents, including groups like Colorado Voters First and backed by major donors like Kent Thiry, argue that this system will boost voter participation, especially for independent and unaffiliated voters. They claim the current system leaves many races effectively decided in low-turnout primaries dominated by party extremes. By opening up primaries to all voters and using RCV, they believe the result will be candidates who better represent the majority (The Colorado Sun) (BallotReady).
The Pros
- Increases Voter Participation: Advocates say opening up primaries to all voters, regardless of party affiliation, will increase turnout and help ensure that candidates reflect the broader electorate’s preferences. Governor Jared Polis has publicly endorsed the measure, arguing that it will encourage more people to engage in the democratic process (The Colorado Sun) (Independent Voter News).
- Majority Support for Elected Officials: RCV ensures that candidates need broad support to win, as they must appeal to a wider range of voters beyond their base. This is touted as a way to reduce partisan gridlock and elect candidates with majority backing (BallotReady).
- Bipartisan Support: The measure has gained endorsements from both sides of the aisle, including support from nonpartisan groups like the League of Women Voters and various mayors across the state, who argue it promotes a more representative democracy (The Colorado Sun) (Independent Voter News).
The Cons
- Complexity and Voter Confusion: Critics, including members of the Colorado Republican Party and some Democratic leaders, argue that ranked-choice voting is overly complicated and risks confusing voters. They point to other states where ballot errors and confusion led to high rates of invalid ballots (The Colorado Sun) (BallotReady).
- High Implementation Costs: The estimated price tag for implementing this system statewide is about $21 million, which opponents argue is a waste of taxpayer dollars. They also warn that county clerks would face logistical challenges trying to educate voters and roll out this new system (The Colorado Sun) (Independent Voter News).
- Funded by Wealthy Interests: Some critics highlight that major financial backers like Kent Thiry and Unite America are heavily influencing the push for this measure. They argue this is less about improving democracy and more about catering to well-funded interests with their own agendas (BallotReady).
What the Colorado Blue Book Says
A “YES” vote on Proposition 131 establishes an all-candidate primary for all voters regardless of their political party for certain offices and advances the top four candidates to a general election where voters rank the candidates in order of preference, once certain conditions in state law are met.
A “NO” vote on Proposition 131 continues the existing primary election system and the current method of selecting candidates and counting votes at general elections.
The Bottom Line
Proposition 131 proposes a big shift in how Colorado runs its elections, aiming to create a more inclusive and representative system. If you believe opening primaries and implementing RCV will lead to a better, more democratic process, a “yes” vote might be your move. But if you’re concerned about voter confusion, implementation costs, or the influence of big-money backers, a “no” vote could make more sense.
We showed you our objective. Now here’s our bias
If the parties actually functioned in this state and the people actually participated, we’d be a hard hell no. Not now, not ever. We get nervous when rich guys dump tons of money into elections to try and tell us how to think and vote. The added complexity might make turnout even smaller.
We’re voting NO. We can see why this is appealing, but we would rather try to repair what we have, get the people involved, and have the middle return to the ballot box on their own. Somehow we know this will pass. Then sh!t will get real. But we encourage you to vote no and then actually get involved as a citizen.
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