| Jonathan Alter | Washington Monthly |
I’d go to ranked [choice] voting. The reason you need ranked voting is that it opens up the discussion to voters who don’t vote in primaries. [RCV is used in Alaska and Maine but was rejected in 2024 in Arizona, Idaho, Colorado, and Missouri].
Opens up debate and dialogue
One thing I’ve said to the DNC is this: New Hampshire allows moderate independents and Republicans to vote in its primary. My view is that this should be a standard for being one of the first ten states. If unaffiliated independents are 50 percent of the electorate, maybe you say, come on, let’s go to the dance together. Because if the primary decides who you’re going to nominate and you’re not thinking about the general election, that’s not strategic.
One way or another, I’m thinking the Democratic Party either goes to ranked voting, which opens up debate and dialogue to voters who don’t get addressed until it’s too late, or changes primaries across the country so those [independent] voters actually get a chance to show up, be heard, and be counted.