Elections in the United States are a mess. Two political parties dominate the conversation, wealthy donors back candidates who serve their personal interests, and voters often end up voting for candidates they see as “the lesser of two evils,” rather than a candidate they believe in. All of this leads to a system designed not to empower citizens, but keep power consolidated among the powerful. 

This is discouraging no matter which side of the political spectrum you see yourself on, and can be even more frustrating if you see yourself somewhere in the middle. Rather than propose a solution that favors one party over another, let’s make a change that will benefit us all! 

Single Transferable Vote (or STV) is a voting system that allows electors (that’s us!) to vote for the candidate we want the most, as well as indicate our next preferred choice if our first choice is eliminated. It means people can vote for who they REALLY want, not just who they think everyone else will vote for. 

A change like this at the national level could take a lifetime. But we can start that change by setting the example of what we want to see here at home!! Let’s adopt STV for Clackamas County elections, and see who else we can inspire from there!