KOOTENAI — Supporters say Proposition 1 is needed to give all Idahoans a chance to vote, while critics claim the initiative on Tuesday’s general election ballot is nothing more than an effort to limit the current one-person, one-vote system.

Both sides had a chance to share their perspectives on Proposition 1, which, if passed, would end the current closed primary system in favor of an open primary and ranked-choice system during a two-and-a-half-hour forum Friday night.

Among the issues raised in the debate was the possible impact on political parties in the state, with some asking whether the measure was intended to harm the dominant Republican party in the state. Others questioned the impact on voter turnout, the potential complexity of ranked-choice voting, and how a large number of candidates would impact turnout and voter fatigue as residents face a potentially daunting slate of candidates.

Participants also wanted to learn about how the measure is funded, as well as the potential financial burden on counties charged with running state elections.

In speeches supporting the measure, Luke Mayville of Reclaim Idaho and Christie Wood of Idaho Veterans Voters said Proposition 1 would increase government accountability by requiring officials to be more responsive to a majority of voters rather than a limited number of voters. a party. A vote in which independent and unaffiliated voters can freely express their voices, rather than aligning themselves with a party they do not support or believe in just to vote, would be more inclusive.

Ranked voting voice would allow a wider range of voices to be heard and would give all parties and all voices within a party a chance to be heard by voters, Wood said. This would also allow veterans like himself, known as independent voters, to actually vote in elections for the country they swore to protect.

But current state Sen. Scott Herndon, who lost his re-election bid in the May primary, and Michael Angiletta, co-founder of Secure Idaho Elections, said the initiative could undermine confidence in the current system, tampering with it rather than helping. due to the potential complexity of the ranking of candidates, leading to the one-person, one-vote system and the outsized influence of outside corporate influence in state politics.

Herndon, who also serves as chairman of the Bonner County Republican Central Committee, emphasized the importance of political parties in organizing and representing common principles, suggesting that Proposition 1 would weaken that structure.

In outlining Proposition 1, Mayville said the government should always be accountable to the people; this idea was also included in Founding Father Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence. But because of Idaho’s closed primary election system, officials can be elected with only a small fraction of those voting and often far from a majority.

“Because we live in a one-party state, we are faced with elected officials who are not accountable to the people of the state,” Mayville said in his opening statement. “They are accountable to approximately 9% of the people in the state. This is not government based on the consent of the governed; this is not living up to one of the fundamental truths set forth by our Founding Fathers.”

Mayville said Proposition 1 aims to change the problems created by a closed system in two ways. First, by opening up the state’s primary system, and second, by introducing ranked-choice voting, which would ensure everyone elected receives 50% of the vote and ensure broad support.

But Angiletta said the complexity of Proposition 1 and the potential for ballots to be corrupted from voters choosing only one candidate erodes confidence in the state’s election system and system.

“We have a very high-trust election system where nearly two-thirds of Idahoans believe in the integrity of the election process in Idaho,” Angiletta said. “It’s a gem and I think we can all agree that it’s something, trust is something we all want to protect.”

Wood, one of the experienced figures, said that statistics show that approximately half of those serving are independent and do not support any political party. Under the current closed party system in Idaho, they are forced to either not vote or register with a party they do not support or believe in.

“My friend Gray Henderson served in Vietnam,” Wood added. “These are the veterans you’ll see, the everyday heroes, the patriots who fought on behalf of this country, and their expectation is that they will be allowed to vote in the election they want.”

Like Angiletta, Herndon said he opposed the initiative, arguing that it was not a local development as supporters claimed, but part of a coordinated effort aimed at undermining the role of political parties in organizing around common principles.

He said it was an outside attempt to change the state’s political system and make parties less relevant to the electoral process, diminishing 250 years of history and relevance. Contrary to claims that closed primaries negatively affected turnout, Herndon said Bonner County’s turnout increased by almost 50%. He added that it is quite easy to vote under the current system.

“Once you register to vote (which can happen on election day) and if you don’t have a membership, those 275,000 unaffiliated votes (6,000 of which are in Bonner County) you can vote in the Republican primary by showing up on election day and saying your allegiance. It’s Republican; that’s what voting in the Republican primary is.” “It’s hard.”

While Mayville agreed with Herndon that voters have that option, he said for many it’s not an option that aligns with their ideals. “They don’t believe they should be forced to join a party, even for a day, even for an hour, just to exercise their right to vote,” he added. “They should be able to remain independent and still vote.”

Supporters said the ranked voters could more accurately be described as an instant runoff in which the last-place candidate is eliminated if no candidate receives 50% of the vote. Fans who list a second option will see their votes go to that candidate.

“As soon as someone gets over 50% they are declared the winner,” Mayville said. “The winner is the candidate who gets the most votes, the most support. … We want elected leaders who represent the broader community, not just a narrow group of voters participating in a closed primary. We want the candidates to represent all of us.”

But critics said ranked-choice voting is not that simple and has produced mixed results in communities and states that have tried the concept. If voters fail to list additional options due to lack of information or voter fatigue due to the large number of candidates on the ballot, Angiletta said, ballots are effectively thrown away.

“So the exhausted vote is, for example, someone who would vote for a candidate in principle and that candidate doesn’t win in the first round and there is no candidate who comes second, third or fourth in the ballot. At the end of that voice is exhaustion,” Angiletta said, citing the Santa Fe vote as an example. he pointed to the recent mayoral race.

“So when we talk about disenfranchising and silencing voters, we also really need to consider the voices that are being silenced by the increasing exponential complexity of ranked-choice voting,” he added.

Herndon disputed claims that the initiative would ensure successful candidates have broad support and said there was no guarantee that would happen. He said it also takes away voters’ choices, as they can’t choose once a candidate is eliminated and can choose from the rest. The proposal would also open the door for big corporations and outside interests to have outsized influence over Idaho elections, which could flock to fill the void left by the parties’ enforced absence.

“If Proposition 1 passes, Alexandria, Va.-based companies will have all kinds of money behind their candidates, pushing your favorite candidate like McDonald’s pushing the Big Mac, and asking who is most likely to win elections in the future?” in question. “And I don’t think Idaho wants that.”