Lincoln County Democrats will meet Monday, May 18 at the Wiscasset 911 Communications Building (behind the courthouse) to discuss rank choice voting and to conduct a straw poll of the various declared and various potential candidates for the Democratic nomination for president in 2016.

The evening begins with social time at 6:30 p.m. The meeting discussion of rank choice voting and the straw poll will commence at 7 p.m. Discussion will be led by former Maine ACLU Director and candidate for the U.S. Senate Shenna Bellows who, along with Eliot Cutler, is among the most prominent Mainers supporting the introduction of ranked choice voting.

“Ranked choice voting or instant run-off,” according to the League of Women Voters of Maine, “allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference (i.e. first, second, third, fourth and so on). Voters have the option to rank as many or as few candidates as they wish. First choices are then tabulated, and if only two candidates received votes, the one with the most votes wins. Otherwise, the last-place candidate is eliminated. Voters who chose the now-eliminated candidate have their ballots added to the totals of their second-ranked candidate. For all other voters, their first choice still counts.

All ballots are then retabulated, with each ballot counting as one vote for each voter's highest ranked candidate who has not been eliminated. This process is repeated until only two candidates remain. The weakest candidates are successively eliminated, and their voters' ballots are added to the totals of their next choices until two candidates remain. At that point, the candidate who receives the most votes wins.”

Ranked choice voting was used successfully in Portland’s mayoral election in 2011 and in a number of other U.S. cities. A ballot initiative has been launched by the League of Women Voters and other organizations to introduce ranked choice voting in Maine for the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, the Governorship and State Senators and Representatives. Organizers are close to having collected the required 62,000 signatures to put the initiative on the November 2016 ballot.

Bellows will discuss the benefits of ranked choice voting and its constitutional implications, and will take participants’ questions.

After the discussion, participating Democrats will have an opportunity to use ranked choice voting in a presidential straw poll to choose the Democratic nominee for President in 2016. A straw poll at this time is only indicative of current trends; Maine Democrats will formally chose their preferred nominee in traditional caucuses next spring. However, Lincoln County has been a bellwether in recent statewide and national elections, voting twice for President Barack Obama and twice for Gov. Paul LePage. In 2009, Lincoln County voters joined a small majority of Mainers in rejecting same sex marriage; in 2012 they switched, as did a majority of Mainers. Perhaps it could be said, “as Lincoln County goes, so goes Maine.” If so, the results of the straw poll will be interesting.

While all interested are invited to the discussion of rank choice voting, the straw poll will be limited to registered Democrats only. A limited number of supporters of the various declared and potential candidates will be able to make short statements on behalf of their preferences. (To sign onto the speakers’ list or for further information, please call Dean Curran, 207-380-5103). Results will be announced immediately after the voting.