Vote early, vote often

By Brendan Joel Kelley
Published on Thursday, January 28, 2010 9:34 AM AKST



A couple of bills recently introduced in the legislature could change the nature of voting in Alaska. As an undeclared nonpartisan voter, Flashlight is pretty stoked on Representative Harry Crawford’s (D-Anchorage) House Bill 248. Currently, those of us who don’t care to affiliate ourselves with a party get to choose the Republican ballot on primary day or the other one, which has the Dems and the rest of ‘em on it. Crawford’s bill would give us the full slate in the primaries, so if you wanted to pick between current Lieutenant Governor Craig Campbell and Representative Jay Ramras to get the R nod to run as second-in-chief, and also choose between Senator Hollis French, Ethan Berkowitz, and Bob Poe for the top spot, you’d be good to go. (Come to think of it, it’d be pretty cool if the lieutenant governor and governor’s races were separate on the general ballot as well.)

Representative Max Gruenberg (D-Anchorage) has another bill, House Bill 288, that would affect elections in two ways. First, it would require either foreign language ballots or interpreters for voters with limited English proficiency in election districts where at least 20 percent of voters speak a common language other than English, something Gruenberg says he’s been trying to get codified for years. (Gruenberg says Republicans oppose it because they assume non-English speakers will vote for the D in the race; he doesn’t particularly agree, and says he doesn’t care if his constituents in Mountain View who aren’t proficient in English vote for him or his opponent, he just thinks they should be able to cast an informed vote.)

The second part of HB 288 would fix an issue minor parties struggle against each election cycle—currently, to get on the ballot, parties have to register a number of voters equal to 3 percent of the voters in the last gubernatorial race, a threshold that currently stands at 9,786. Gruenberg’s bill would change the cut-off to a simple 2,500 registered members, something that would make the Libertarians and Green Party folks happy.

bjk@anchoragepress.com


Comments

5 comment(s)

    Scott Kohlhaas wrote on Mar 8, 2010 2:37 PM:

    " UPDATE 3-8-2010:

    Max has changed the bill so that the 2500 registrations for a party to be recognised stands alone and is now HB 396. HB 396 has been co-sponsored by Berta Gardner (bless her heart).

    Please call your legislator today and ask them to co-sponsor as well! "

    Harley wrote on Jan 29, 2010 11:52 PM:

    " This is pleasing to see something being done to help the limited parties that have to do everything and more to even contest with the two major parties. It is important to be able to keep ballot access to show credibility for your party and have a place for the parties name to be seen on the ballot and to give the people of this great country a chance to have their voice vocalized rather than just a mere mumble. So Yes on 288! "

    Jespo wrote on Jan 29, 2010 9:30 AM:

    " If you are not part of a party then you shouldn’t get to choose who that party nominates for any office. If you want to be a non affiliated voter then be one! That means voting for or against the people the parties put up for a vote, or getting yourself (or someone else) onto the ballot who is not affiliated with a part.

    Open primaries is how the Republicans ended up nominating Mild Toast for President. (I mean McCain) The true Republicans knew he couldn’t win but because of open primary laws the Dem’s were able to get a “gentle Republican” on the ballot that would not even fight their nominee.

    Join a party or DO NOT VOTE IN A PRIMARY! "

    Brendan Joel Kelley wrote on Jan 28, 2010 9:35 AM:

    " Scott - you're correct, that last line's been corrected, I must have been typing too fast.

    Brendan "

    Scott Kohlhaas wrote on Jan 27, 2010 11:28 PM:

    " Wait a minute! Just to set the record straight...it's actually Max Gruenberg's HB 288 that will cut the number of registrations needed by a party to 2500, not Mr. Crawford's bill.
    Anyway, I want to applaud Max Gruenberg for his leadership on these important electoral issues.
    The Greens and Libertarians have a long and storied history in this state of Alaska. Names like Randolph, Fanning, Marrou, Whitaker, Whitmore and Sykes were record setters in third party percentages. But the Greens were pushed off the ballot a few years ago and it was shameful the way they were treated. The Libertarians are at risk later this year.
    Let's all get together (in the name of pluralism) and get behind Max's office on this HB 288.
    Call your legislator today!! Let's get some more co-sponsers! "

WRITE A COMMENT

Use the form below to post a brief comment to this story, or respond to other readers.

Editors review submitted comments periodically during the day for offensive or off-topic content before posting. Your thoughtful contribution to the online discussion is appreciated.

(optional)