STEPHENS WONDERS WHY WE WANT UNINTELLIGENT VOTERS
With all due respect, the Republican party in San Leandro is in dire straits when Lou Filipovich is your most vocal supporter but there is another and he is not a Republican In Name Only.
When Filipovich, who has unsuccessfully run for multiple offices in the area over the years, addressed the city council Monday night he stated it was stocked completely with Democrats. It’s not and Councilman Bill Stephens, who technically is listed as an independent, vigorously shook his head in disagreement. Stephens and “his conservative values” as one local politico constantly uses to describe him usually lies under the radar until he says things that seem to drop out of the political notebook of the late Lee Atwater.
During Monday night’s sometimes brutal discussion of Ranked Choice Voting, Stephens said he was unconvinced of the often stated argument the voting system allows for higher voter participation and, instead, wondered why we want to arm dumb voters with ballots.
“This may be considered blasphemy, but I don’t like a lot of people to vote. I want informed voters to vote. I don’t understand why we’re trying to get numbers as opposed to intelligence. That goes against the common rule…I study my ballot and study my candidates and it shocks me sometimes to hear people talk about issues they know very little about but we want them to vote.”
Stephens went on to voice disapproval for RCV for fear it may fail to give every voter a voice, apparently, an informed voice. When asked by Councilman Michael Gregory to clarify his comments, Stephens said his opinion is based more on informed voters making decisions than unintelligent ones.
JOIN THE REVOLUTION! http://www.eastbaycitizen.com
ebcitizen.com 
I am glad to know you think that we are all stupid voters more of a reason to get educated on the issues and candidates and take our butts to the polls, this political race that has barely got off the ground is losing site of the people and that is sad, that their ambition out ways their passion……in order to get into these candidates heads I encourage you to go to their council meetings and listen to them talk….the only to get to know them and researching what they have already done. Media and word of mouth is not an accurate way to get facts either.
LikeLike
“I don't like a lot of people to vote.”
Councilmember Stephens' view is in lockstep with the State and National Republican Parties. Given the fact that their Party's current public policy advocacies and implementations are quite unpopular, they have decided to attempt to suppress the vote of citizens they don't like rather than improving their views or competence.
The only difference between Stephens and the Republican Party as a whole is that their Party usually attempts to hide their vote suppression attempts behind some fact-lacking, ginned-up controversy (illegal immigrants voting OMG!!!!!, ACORN “fraud”, etc.). Stephens reveals something real by his statement; the future success of Republican candidates will often depend on making Stephens' preferences come to life.
LikeLike
IRV requires a higher information demand on voters than a “vote for 1” contest. How can that be anything but the truth?
IN Australia, voters are required to vote and often resort to “donkey voting”, which is where they just randomly make selections in order to have ranked their choices.
Don't forget also that in Australia, their ballot is much simpler than a US ballot and lends itself more easily to IRV.
Donkey voting. Where you don't really have enough information but you vote anyway.
LikeLike