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Monday, November 2, 2009

IRV: Santa Claus, Jesus Christ and Barack Obama did NOT endorse Instant Runoff Voting

Santa Clause and Jesus Christ didn't endorse Instant Runoff Voting and neither did Barack Obama. The St Paul Better Ballots group claimed lofty pro IRV endorsements on campaign mailers. Endorsement claims range from St Paul League of Women Voters, to the State DFL Party all the way up to President Obama. The St Paul League of Women Voters asked Better Ballots to correct their literature, but were ignored. Finally, though, the pro IRV group has run into a barrier called the Minnesota State Election Law. Its about time. We've stomached these so-called "endorsements" for long enough.
Anti-IRV group calls claims of Obama, DFL endorsement ‘evil’
By Paul Demko 11/2/09

At issue is a mailing that the Saint Paul Better Ballot Campaign, which is running the pro-IRV campaign, has sent out to potential voters. It claims a wide array of supporters for the ballot measure, from President Obama to the Star Tribune to the Minnesota DFL party.

But Chuck Repke, co-chair of the No Bad Ballots Committee, charges that the claims are patently false. Under state election law, a campaign cannot claim the support of an individual unless that person has provided written permission. Clearly President Obama, Repke notes, hasn’t taken time out from his schedule to provide written support for the local ballot initiative.

“I was surprised that Santa Claus and Jesus Christ weren’t on the list,” Repke says. “You can’t be more deceptive than to claim the endorsement of the President of the United States when you don’t have it. I’m just flabbergasted.”

Repke is particularly peeved that the pro-IRV group is claiming DFL support. He notes that at the St. Paul DFL convention in March, a resolution to support the ballot measure was explicitly voted down by party activists. And in a town dominated by Democrats, the party’s purported backing could carry weight with voters.

“They cannot claim DFL endorsement,” Repke says. “These people know that. They were at the convention. I saw them there. They were standing next to me.”



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