Thoughts on my first DLANC Election

Last Thursday, I voted in my first Downtown LA Neighborhood Council election. It was a very simple process. As I was allowed to vote for only three contests, I filled out my ballot in less than a minute. I went into the election with the assumption, that the election was by majority. Now that the unofficial results are coming in, I'm surprised to learn that election is by plurality. In the case of a tie, according to the Unofficial DLANC Weblog, the contest is decided by a coin-flip. That seems ridiculous.

Why not use Instant Run-off Voting? My first exposure to IRV was when I was a student at UC Berkeley. The Associated Students of the University of California has used IRV for its elections for its 5 officers and 20 senators for many years. If the ASUC can pull it off, why can't the DLANC?

It's Time to Vote

Today is election day. Sure, this election is not as sexy as a presidential primary (oh imagine if my fellow Californians had not voted to move up the date for presidential primary), but don't let this let down deter you from going to the polls. On the ballot are a couple of state initiatives that tackle eminent domain (prop 98 could result in the elimination of rent control).

Folks in the second supervisory district of LA county have an exciting race between Bernard Parks and Mark Ridley-Thomas. If I lived on the other side of the street, I would be voting in that contest.

Speaking of that, before going to the polls, check for the location of your polling place on line. It may have changed!

LA County Voters
Other California Counties

One voter living across the street from me told me that he votes in Little Tokyo; This morning I found out that he's supposed to vote at LA CAN.