On June 6, the California Assembly passed AB 1294, the bill to let all counties and cities use Instant-Runoff Voting for elections for their own officers. Under current law, only charter cities and counties are free to make that decision. This is the first time either house of the California legislature has ever passed any bill in favor of alternative vote systems. The vote was 47-31.
On June 1, Rasmussen Polls released a poll concering Michael Bloomberg as a potential independent presidential candidate. The results: 7% are very likely to vote for him; 20% are somewhat likely to vote for him; 12% would consider voting for him under certain circumstances; 28% would not vote for him; 33% are undecided.
Asked how they would vote if it were apparent that the Republican could not win and the Democratic nominee were Hillary Clinton, respondents replied: 46% for Bloomberg, 37% Clinton, 17% would vote Republican anyway or would vote for someone else or are undecided.
Asked how they would vote if it were apparent that the Democrat could not win and the Republican nominee were Rudy Giuliani, the results were: 35% Giuliani, 34% Bloomberg, 31% would vote Democratic anyway or for someone else or are undecided.
A television station in Oklahoma City, FOX 25, has a daily poll on its web page. The poll for June 6 is “Do you think all political parties should be able to get on Oklahoma’s ballot?” When anyone votes, the screen asks for his or her first name, city, state, and gives the voter a chance to comment. The poll is at http://okcfox.com, on the left side.
On June 5, the U.S. Senate defeated an amendment to the Immigration bill that would have required states to turn away voters from the polls, unless those voters presented a government-issued photo ID. The vote was 52-41. Thanks to Rick Hasen’s Election Law Blog for this news. The amendment was sponsored by Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).
The nation has now seen 4 presidential debates on national television this year. Two Republican debates each had 10 candidates; two Democratic debates each had 8 candidates. The June 5 debate was two hours long. These debates are successful. They give all of the participating candidates a chance to set forth a message. There is no longer any excuse whatsoever for the general election debates to be confined to candidates who poll 15% at the polls. It is hoped that the organization Rock the Debates (www.rockthedebates.org) will succeed in its mission. Its mission is to put the leading Democratic and Republican presidential contenders on record for more inclusive general election debates.
