How does IRV benefit communities of color?
In a 2008 op-ed, state Senator Mee Moua and Minneapolis Council member Ralph Remington wrote: “The effects of IRV are huge, and we believe it is one of the best modifications in our voting system — for communities of color –— since the Voting Rights Act of 1964. For starters, all candidates get to go to the general election because the primary is eliminated. No longer will folks be excluded from running simply because they didn’t have enough funds or didn’t mobilize their base in a low-turnout primary. This extra step in the voting process — which gets very little attention from the media and “get-out-the-vote” organizers — is a real barrier to voter participation. Primary turnout is lowest in communities of color, meaning we have very little voice in this weeding process. Our candidates have a hard time getting through in any district that isn’t predominantly comprised of people of color. In contrast, we turn out in proportionally higher numbers in general elections. With IRV, our eff
