California has been using the top-two system starting in 2011. But 2018 is the first year in which both Governor and U.S. Senate are on the ballot. Both offices always attract many candidates into the primary. And because candidates from all parties, as well as independent candidates, all run on the same ballot, the 2018 primary ballot is especially long.
This article from the Los Angeles Times explains that many counties are forced to put either Governor, or U.S. Senate, on the primary ballot so that some candidates for either office are listed in two separate columns. This, in turn, causes many voters to make a choice in each column. So, even though these voters understand that they can only vote for one person for any particular race, they still vote for two candidates for the same office because they choose one candidate from each column.
Of course, if each of California’s six qualified parties had its own primary ballot, there would be no such problem.
Mid-Month Commentary
By James Ogle [One]
We need to turn serious about our work and so please allow
me to call our attention to serious matters with our team.
Too many people complain when I suggest that voters alternated
between opposite genders (#1 female, #2 male, #3 female,
#4 male, etc.) and especially candidates, as though I were
insulting their gender or political strategy.
But when the voters go to vote, there is a lot of randomness,
so we are asking for balance to be considered when electing
our team. By alternating genders we’re guaranteed 50/50
gender balance so please help bring balance to the team
when you vote using ranked choice voting (RCV).
Politics is about speaking freely of ideas, the free
flow of information, a democratic and free vote.
What better time is there than now to set new policy and to
be fair to all, while we try to generate funds for the International
Parliament’s Earth Day humanitarian project?
This project to help raise funds for the International
Parliament’s (IP) Human Rights Ministry, and when people join
as Provincial Parliament Senator by signing up and paying
$10., that is our funding. Of these funds, 51% goes
to the Human Rights Ministry and 49% goes to expences
for all sixty Cabinet Ministries.
We hope to be expanding the names on the blank ballot
which elects the “Ten Executives”. Currently at ten,
new proposed guidelines will increase the number
of nominees to twenty-six, of whom your name may be one.
Votes for the Ten Execs and the IP Guidelines can be made
only by the 527 elected MIPs and IP Senators. The 500 MIPs’
election cycle is once every five years under current guidelines
and we have 500 elected Members of International Parliament
(MIPs).
There are 473 open IP Senator seat (of 500) so by
paying for a friend(s) by those who can afford to bring
more IP Senators to the team, that will bring potential
voters to the assembly in the expected upcoming “vote
of confidence” for the Ten Execs of the IP.
Please consider helping us to set new precedents in
our funding, by signing up now as Provincial Senator ($10.) or
IP Senator ($60.), bring your team and help build the
International Parliament:
http://www.allpartysystem.com
* * *
Richard,
The preceding “reply” by James Ogle has absolutely zero relationship to the topic of so many Gov. & Senate candidates on the 2016 CA ballot. Plus, it is far too lengthy and made even moreso by his not utilizing the full width of the comment box. Then, in the last paragraph he solicits money! Should BAB be utilized for financial solicitation in this manner? Surely, not. Richard, this guy James Ogle needs to be reined in with his use of BAN Leave a Reply Comments. I imagine that 99.9% of the other readers of BAN would agree.
But, in regard to the actual subject of so many candidate names to be on the 2016 CA ballot for Gov. and US Senator . . . . . There were a lot more names on the ballot some years back when we had the recall election here in CA. I don’t recall any reports of excessive “overvoting” then. When you come right down to it, each voter has the responsibility to read the instructions on the ballot for how to cast their vote. If a voter is so negligent and also irresponsible to seek out the one candidate they favor, then perhaps they shouldn’t be voting anyway so their overvote for an office leading to their vote not being counted perhaps isn’t so bad.
Gene, the United Coalition California launched the project via California State elections four years ago and the project took a significant amount of interest on the global level so now we are returning to the California State elections in 2018 where over 100 nominees (of 242 total names) are vying for State elective offices.
See the 2018 nominations:
http://www.usparliament.org/v-h-ss11-2018-nominations.php
The paper ballot will one long list, the vote count demonstrated live after voting, recorded by video (four videographers have confirmed attendence on April 22nd) and a link to the YouTube video to be posted here.
This is an alternative sort of voting and the connection between my post and the California Secretary of State’s vote count is the contrast between the two voting systems.
I apologise for not making the relationship more clear, they are both elections which include both Senatorial and Gubernatorial nominees in California.
Regarding the financial solicitation, this is a unique situation where humanitarian and political concerns are connected.
We ask that aluminium cans be brought to the event, it is free to the public, and we note the small political fee in case there may be those interested in participating on policy, a processing fee is required.
How many overvotes were there in the 2000 Presidential Primary, when there were 24 candidates?
The ratio of free MIPs participants to International Parliament (IP) Senators is 500 to 28. MIP #501 is to be elected #500 because of recent death of USA Anarchist leader.
With the election of 500 names simultaneously elected with 1/501ths (plus one vote each) all the names were consecutively elected with a very close threshold each broken with one vote.
There were plenty of names who weren’t elected but they received votes. But everyone’s highest rankings elected their top choice so no person cast an invalid vote which elected no one.
http://www.international-parliament.org
How many candidates possible in ONE column (with office instructions, if any — eg Vote ONLY for ONE) ???
ALL ballot *forms* the same in ALL precincts in CA (at least for statewide offices) ???
— ie more 14 Amdt EPC violations ???
IE — if candidates in 2 columns — do instructions cross over both columns at top of columns ???
Where is that Model Election LAW ???
The 2003 California special gubernatorial election only had one race on the ballot, so it was easier for voters to understand that they should only cast one vote.
The fundamental problem is that it is too easy to get on the statewide ballot in California, and too hard to get on a congressional or legislative ballot. To run for Senator requires 65 signatures and $3480. To run for US Representative requires 40 signatures from within the district, along with $1740.
If you went to a print shop and were told that you could get your name and occupation printed on 7,500,000 ballots for $3480 ($0.00046 per ballot, or 2161 ballots per dollar), or 141,897 ballots for $1740, ($0.01226 per ballot, or 82 ballots per dollar) which are you going to choose?
The solution is to eliminate pay to play. Require a petition of 1/20 of 1% of the votes cast in the previous mid-term election for the area in question. There were about 7.5M voters, so this would be 3750 signatures for a statewide electorate; 94 for the average senate district; 71 for the average congressional district; and 47 for the average assembly district.
Then let a candidate offset that with $5 per signature. So for statewide office $18,750; $469 for senate; $354 for US representative; or $234 for the average assembly district. The value per signature could be based on the minimum wage, perhaps the minimum wage divided by 2, so currently $5.25 per signature.
It should be as easy or as hard for a party to have a full slate of assembly candidates as it to have a candidate governor.
If this does not limit the number of candidates for some offices, then multiply the previous amount by the number of candidates divided by 10. While there are 27 gubernatorial candidates, 11 lieutenant gubernatorial candidates there are only 28 for the other 6 statewide offices.
In print media — Internet text or pdf
————-
Elector form- [9, 10 or 12] point type, [3.5 by 4.25 inches]
NOMINATING PETITION – [PARTISAN (for legislative offices)] [NONPARTISAN (for executive/judicial offices)]
I nominate (candidate’s name and address) (of the (one word party name – not more than 16 capital letters) Party) for (office) in (election area) at the (date) general election.
Elector signature, printed name, address and date signed.
Return to- (address)
—
Part of PR and AppV Con Amdt
@RW,
In the 2003 election, 4.56% of voters cast no vote on the first question; and 8.03% had no vote for the second question.
JR, far many more people in your figures cast a vote but elected no one.
These detailed statistics in varying categories should be studied more in the future and PPR will demonstrate much higher levels of course.
In some cases the levels will be lower under PRR depending on the category being studied.
The bottom line is that the PPR that is viciously opposed, censored and snuffed out by pluralist is by far superior to the numbers under plurality voting.