Stay Curious. Stay Connected.
MailNewsletters♡Donate Now
Sign up
*Password must be at least 8 characters and contain one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter, one number and one symbol.
Already have an account?
By submitting, you consent that you are at least 18 years of age and to receive information about MPR's or APMG entities' programs and offerings. The personally identifying information you provide will not be sold, shared, or used for purposes other than to communicate with you about MPR, APMG entities, and its sponsors. You may opt-out at any time clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of any email communication. View our Privacy Policy.
Sign in to your profile
Forgot Password?
New to MPR News?
Welcome back
to news
for you
Reset Password

Enter the username on file and we'll send you a code to reset your password.

Still require assistance or not sure what your User Name is?
Welcome back
to news
for you
Email Verification

A verification code has been emailed to

Still awaiting the code?
Matt Sepic

Effort to do away with ranked choice voting in St. Paul encounters resistance

First-time voter
Election judge Chris Soutter explains ranked-choice voting to first-time voter Dalia Selman, 18, at Baker Recreation Center in St. Paul, Minn. Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2013.
MPR Photo/Jeffrey Thompson

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Log inCreate a free Account

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!

An effort to do away with ranked choice voting in St. Paul is getting strong pushback. Dozens of people packed into a meeting of a city charter commission committee Monday to show their support for keeping the system as is.

St. Paul residents approved ranked choice voting in 2009 and began using it in 2011.

But Charter Commission member Chuck Repke said it's confusing for voters and has not lived up to its promise of boosting turnout. Repke wants to put a question on the ballot this fall asking voters to bring back primaries.

"People don't rank things," Repke said. "You don't decide today I'm going to rank which restaurant I'm going to dinner. That's not how we think."

Backers of ranked choice disagree. Ellen Brown — who chaired the St. Paul Better Ballot campaign — said there's no reason to revert to the old system of primaries.

"All of the candidates are on the ballot when all the voters are at the polls," Brown said. "You're not pre-selecting two candidates by a tiny majority of primary voters."

The commission is expected to continue discussion of the proposed ballot issue at a March 27 meeting.