A powerful and achievable solution exists that puts voters first and gives politicians the freedom to act in the public interest – Final-Five Voting.
The Solution: Final-Five Voting
Pioneered by Katherine Gehl in collaboration with Michael E. Porter, Final-Five Voting (FFV) is the combination of Top-Five Primaries and Instant-Runoff Voting (IRV) general elections that will return power to Georgians and help focus our nation’s political dialogue on solving problems, not furthering divisions.
How It Works – Final-Five Voting
Courtesy of The Institute for Political Innovation
How It Works
1. Top-Five Primary Election
- All US federal candidates in Georgia (for both US Congress and US Senate) run on a single primary ballot, regardless of party affiliation.
- All voters are eligible to vote in this single primary. Voters select their favorite candidate.
- When the votes are tallied, the top five vote getters advance to the general election.
This eliminates the hyper-partisan eye-of-the-needle and encourages coalition building in elections and in office.
How it Works
1. Top-Five Primary Election
- All US federal candidates in Georgia (for both US Congress and US Senate) run on a single primary ballot, regardless of party affiliation.
- All voters are eligible to vote in this single primary. Voters select their favorite candidate.
- When the votes are tallied, the top five vote getters advance to the general election.
This eliminates the hyper-partisan eye-of-the-needle and encourages coalition building in elections and in office.
2. Instant-Runoff Voting in the General Election
- Using a ranked-choice ballot, voters pick their favorite candidate, just like always. They also have the option of picking their 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th place candidates.
- First-place votes are counted and if one candidate gets a majority (over 50%), the election is over and that candidate wins. If no candidate has a majority, instant runoff(s) are automatically conducted by eliminating the lowest polling candidate and each of their voter’s single votes are transferred to their next-best choice.
- The process is repeated until the leading vote-getter has over 50% and is declared the winner.
No more “spoiler problem”. No more expensive and time-consuming runoffs and protracted campaign cycles. The candidate with the broadest appeal to the majority of voters wins.
Copyright 2020 © Katherine M. Gehl and Michael E. Porter
Final-Five Voting changes the dynamics of elections by making the general election the most important election and prioritizing healthy competition. Once elected, legislators will have freedom and accountability to implement promised solutions for the public good without jeopardizing reelection.
