San Juan County faces a lawsuit after blocking four Charter Amendments from going to the voters
||| FROM BEN CHAPMAN for FAIR VOTE WASHINGTON |||
On August 2nd, the San Juan County Council unilaterally blocked four Charter Amendments from going to the voters. This decision was made behind closed doors without the input of the public. They acted in direct contradiction to the Charter Commission’s mission and direction – namely to ask the residents of San Juan County how they would choose to change the government. Now, a lawsuit has been filed to put power back in the hands of the voters by placing the four Charter Amendments on the ballot.
Among the Charter Amendments is one for ranked-choice voting. Ranked-choice voting (RCV) is a simple-to-use, nonpartisan reform that gives voters more choice, more voice, and more say in elections. It is used by over 50 jurisdictions across the country and it creates more issue-based campaigns that better serve the voters.
Ron Metcalf of Lopez Island said, “I am so in favor of ranked-choice voting because it is non-partisan and it is such an opportunity for me to vote for who I really want to vote for. It lets me express support for who I really want, and if they don’t get in, I can still support a backup choice.”
RCV is a simple improvement to the way we vote. With RCV, you can rank candidates on your ballot in the order you prefer: 1st choice, 2nd choice, 3rd choice, and so on. If your favorite can’t win, your vote counts for your next choice. View this short video to learn more.
Mr. Chapman: Thank you for your concerns regarding the San Juan County’s charter and the rights of the County’s voters. Can you please tell us where the lawsuit has been filed and provide a link to that filing? I’m sure many of us would be interested in learning how your organization views our County’s actions as unlawful. Also, I’d like to know what relief you are seeking? I believe that our Auditor can no longer accept new measures for this November’s ballot. Are you asking that the four proposed amendments be placed on the November 2023 ballot?