In May, IVN published a poll revealing that over 67% of voters in San Diego and Chula Vista supported the More Choice San Diego initiative to allow voters to rank up to 5 candidates in the general election, instead of choosing among two.
Like voters in other parts of the country, San Diegans cited their weariness with being faced with deciding between “two bad choices” and the expectation that the More Choice system would lead to less negative campaigning, a reduction in partisanship, and hope to clean up corruption in politics.
While the broad support of voters was encouraging, More Choice San Diego leaders have had less success getting political candidates to join the bandwagon.
So, this month, More Choice San Diego sent an email to every candidate seeking office to ask them: Do you support the More Choice San Diego coalition?
Some, like US Rep. Scott Peters and Assemblymember David Alvarez were already early supporters.
Other electeds not on the ballot this year, such as Supervisor Monica Montgomery, have previously voted to put the More Choice initiative on the city ballot.
But, this would be the first comprehensive survey in which every local candidate was asked to take a public position on the More Choice reform.
Somewhat surprising to coalition members, almost every candidate chose to remain silent.
Independent candidate for mayor, Larry Turner, responded to the questionnaire and included a statement in support:
“I support More Choice’s efforts to bring greater power to Independent political voices via the ballot process. As a lifelong Independent, I believe there is no greater urgency than to hear from all voters, not just those who identify as left or right, since great ideas that benefit all taxpayers originate across the political spectrum.”
Brian Maienschein, who has had his share of fights with both sides of the political aisle and is challenging another Democrat for city attorney, also expressed his support for the More Choice San Diego coalition.
No candidates expressed opposition to the initiative. But the unwillingness to voice public support for a measure that is supported by more than two-thirds of voters is probably explained by the fact that both major political parties and current beneficiaries of the political system generally oppose the election reform.
The More Choice coalition will continue to work with elected officials in an effort to educate them on the value of More Choice, making sure voters know who is willing to stand up for the voters and who is not part of that effort.
Candidates who wish to join the reform effort can add their name to the full list of supporters on the More Choice San Diego website.