If you want to see exactly why Arizona’s election system needs an upgrade, just look at the high-stakes drama currently brewing in Tempe.
Lately, the city has been a pressure cooker of civic debate. The spark was a controversial parks ordinance that activists claimed was a targeted attempt to stop aid groups from feeding unhoused neighbors. City leaders insisted the update was merely a “content-neutral” cleanup of a code that hadn’t been touched since 1967.
It’s safe to say the community wasn’t buying it!
The fallout was immediate, with citizens moving to gather signatures to attempt a repeal of the council’s measure. Voters quickly gathered nearly 5,000 signatures to reverse the council’s actions, and they were able to accomplish this despite allegations of the mysterious funding for out-of-state counter petitioners and the spreading of disinformation around the citizen-led effort.
A surge of new candidates stood up to run for office… but there’s a problem
This local friction has sparked an incredible surge of engagement, with seven candidates now vying for three open council seats. But here’s the problem: our current system isn’t built to efficiently handle this much democracy.
Because so many people are running, Tempe is staring down a two-step “runoff” process:
The Primary: March 10th
The “General” (Runoff): May 19th
Under city code, unless a candidate clears a strict 50% majority in March, the race drags on into May. This “do-over” election costs taxpayers a fortune and historically sees a massive drop-off in voter turnout, which will see a disproportionately low-level of turnout for the most marginalized voters among us.
There’s a Better Way
With Ranked Choice Voting, Tempe could have a single, high-turnout election in March. Voters would rank their favorites, and the winners would be decided then and there with broad majority support. No expensive second election, because RCV enables you to hold an “instant runoff” on the same ballot.
Tempe is just one example of a community that’s proving the appetite for engagement is high, but the system is lagging behind. Let’s work together to make “one and done” the new standard for Arizona.
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Warmly,
Kazz Fernandes
Executive Director
Voter Choice Arizona
***UPDATE***
This email went out to our list prior to the March 10th election. Since then, our prediction proved to be correct. Only 1 candidate reached the threshold needed to claim one of the three seats up for election in the March race. This means that for the first time in a decade, Tempe will have runoff elections for to fill the 2 remaining seats. This could have been avoided by using an instant runoff election, which would save taxpayer dollars while at the same time increasing participation.
Above we listed the dates for Tempe’s local elections, but Tempe voters will also be receiving ballots for the July 21st Primary election for State and Federal offices, and just 3 months later will also be voting for the November 3rd general elections. Homeowners in Tempe will also be able to participate in the SRP Board elections on April 7th. In previous years, we’ve had to replace elected leaders due to death, resignation, or expulsion which could lead to additional special elections and special election runoffs. 5+ elections over just 9 months, this will lead to voter exhaustion and unnecessary, wasteful expenses for taxpayers. Adopting instant runoffs and aligning local elections with state and federal elections would be a simple solution to cap the number of elections to 2- 3 in a given year while still maximizing the voice of Arizona voters.