VPIRG mock election aims to demonstrate ranked-choice voting

MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) - The Vermont Public Interest Research Group has opened a mock ranked-choice voting election.

VPIRG is inviting Vermonters to cast votes for their preferred Democratic or Republican nominees for U.S. House and Senate.

It’s designed to demonstrate how ranked-choice voting would work.

Ranked-choice voting is a method that allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference.

The organization argues that the voting reform would allow voters to choose candidates that reflect their values without fear their preferred candidate might siphon voters from another candidate.

“The idea is actually very simple; we wanted to just give Vermont voters to see what it would be like to participate in an election where they can choose the candidates and rank them in order of preference. There’s really nothing complicated about it. You make choices every day-- what do you want for dinner, where do you want to go on vacation or what have you,” said Paul Burns, the executive director of VPIRG.

The last day to submit your mock election vote is Tuesday, June 21, at 11:59 a.m. Click here to participate.

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