On April 20, the San Diego city council held a hearing on a bill for ranked choice voting. Currently San Diego city elections have a primary in June of even years, and then in November, the top two vote-getters compete, even if someone got 50% in the primary.

The bill would eliminate the primary except in races with at least six candidates. In races with fewer than six candidates, there would only be the November election. However, that system has the disadvantage that candidates must file early in the year, even though the election in most cases would not be held for eight months after the filing deadline.

This newspaper story describes the skeptical reception received by the bill. The story also indicates that a proposal to have only one round in all cases might be more acceptable. If the bill provided for only one round, in November, then the filing deadline could be much later in the year, probably in August. Thanks to Eric Wong for the link.