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Commentary: Town hall meetings will hopefully unwrap STAR voting system

by John Ross | Oct 3, 2024 | Featured Sidebar

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By JOHN W. ROSS/for The Herald  —  Ah, voting systems. They’re a bit like the weather—more or less, plus or minus, give or take.

Some people like it hot and sunny. Others want it misty and cool. While yet others prefer theirs freezing cold with solid iced rivers or lakes for skating or hills piled deep with loose, powdery snow to ski down or across. And nobody gets exactly what they want—everything all the time, anyway. Some can just stay out of the weather—fire up whatever heater, wood stove, furnace or electric space type. Or one can fickly crank up their AC, or heat pump to their desired setting.

Regardless, whatever the climate-driven weather delivers, people are bound to complain. “Hot enough for ya?” they’ll ask one day or “Cold enough for ya?” another. The questions never seem to fall out of favor.

Likewise with the election system—at least in countries where folks are allowed to complain—and we all know which THOSE countries are even as some folks seem intent on bringing such like here—a whole other can of worms and yet also on the ballot in November.

And just like with the weather, folks are gonna complain that nobody ever does anything about that either. Until now when, suddenly, change is in the air and just like the season, a changing climate is driving it—this one of mood.

Oakridge voters will be asked in a few weeks now whether they prefer to rank their candidates on a numbered scale from most to least desirable. And if you don’t like any of your choices or some about the same, you can stay home or pinch your nostrils and mark one. Make a mistake with the numbering system and your ballot is voided. Try again next voting cycle.

Oakridge, however, according to City Manager James Cleavenger and a cast of supporting characters including Equal Vote Coalition Executive Director Sara Wolk, and City Counselors Dawn Kinyon and Kelly Brewer, has a chance to do better. Electorate willing, local voters will saddle up out a STAR-based system that allows for more nuanced preferences for any and all candidates and each and every voter—party or clique aside. Whether your particular favorite makes the built-in, automatic runoff or not, every voter will have a voice in who is or is not seated in the comfy chairs in City Council chambers come 2026.

Every voter gets a virtual cluster of stars—up to five per candidate—for as many as they choose to favor at whatever level of enthusiasm from five to none. The two candidates with the most stars rise like cream in a milk jug to the second round “runoff” count that’s decided by the number of voters that gave them a higher rating, regardless of the actual number of stars—just higher or lower, more or fewer stars down to zero on traceable paper ballots one after the other until the deal is done. Machines do the heavy lifting.

And, if you preferred a socialist, say, over a communist, say, that candidate gets your runoff vote for that seat. If you gave, for the sake of not using names, the fascist five stars and a Christian Nationalist something less, your ballot counts as one runoff vote for the fascist. Or a conservative, or liberal, Democrat, Green, Republican or Progressive—all according to your preference and the more the merrier. Thus, the STAR Voting system claims that every vote really does count. And, more voters will be moved to participate as will more candidates running with theoretically wider perspectives and platforms.

Everybody wins, or so the story goes.

The morning after, one might still grump and grouse at whatever outcome, but at least their vote—based on their unique starred preferences, will have been counted. Twice, actually—for better or for worse, for richer or poorer and so on. And, proponents claim, that’s the beauty of the STAR system, unless you like outcomes arranged by one party or another that are subject to spoil-sport or spoiled-rich candidates who have a way of crushing voter hopes based on rigid stands, risky platforms or sketchy proposals. Some might be heartfelt, others coldly calculated to throw an election to their hidden favorite, trashing voter sentiment.

Back in the day, one could maybe follow the money and see what mischief was afoot. But now, a well-intentioned voter has to seek and trod a path through dark money alleys where, by definition, it’s kind of hard to see who’s zooming who—never mind why—and the voters get mugged.

So, come election day, Oakridge voters will have the unique option to try out the touted most flexible system for measuring their will, putting an end to hijinks and hanky-panky of grifters and manipulators bending the voters’ will to their nefarious designs, however hidden or transparent. Or voters can just say no.

And even if the proposal passes, STAR Voting will not be operational until the next election cycle and for only the following three elections. After that, voters will be asked whether they want to stick with the STAR system or slide back to the tried and less-than-true system of yay or nay—up or down, winner take all. Then the grumbling can continue sure as lightning leads a cold-front or clouds follow silver linings ad infinitum—again plus or minus, give or take, more or less.

John Ross
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John Ross is journalist with over 10 years experience writing and editing for daily and weekly newspapers and at wire service--United Press International International. He has an MS in Ecology, specializing in spider behavior and biological control and also ran a small baking business for 20 years in the San Francisco Bay area.

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Written by John Ross

October 3, 2024

Alpine Stream Construction Highway 58 Oakridge Oregon

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