Op-Ed: Oppose Prop 1

The following Op-Ed was submitted by Brian Almon, Chairman of the Dist. 14 Republican Central Committee. Op-Eds do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of those at the Idaho Dispatch.

At our October meeting, the District 14 Republicans unanimously voted to oppose Proposition 1. The jungle primary and ranked choice voting laid out in this proposition will dismantle our time-tested election systems, create chaos and confusion, and lead to many unintended consequences. Backers of Prop 1 have dishonestly claimed that this is simply restoring the pre-2012 open primary, but that is not the case. Prop 1 would create an entirely new election system in Idaho, one that is complex, expensive, and difficult to audit by hand. Prop 1 would decrease trust in Idaho’s elections.

The District 14 GOP joins Governor Brad Little, Attorney General Raúl Labrador, Senators Jim Risch and Mike Crapo, Congressmen Russ Fulcher and Mike Simpson, a vast majority of Republican state representatives and senators, and Chairwoman Dorothy Moon in opposing Prop 1. On behalf of the Republican precinct committeemen of Eagle and Gem County, I urge voters to reject this radical change and maintain the time-tested system of one person, one vote.

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