NAILED IT!
THANK YOU.
RANK CHOICE VOTING MAY BE COMING
TO A TOWN NEAR YOU.
THE ALTERNATIVE BALLOT SYSTEM
MADE NEWS LAST MONTH WHEN
DEMOCRAT MARY PERALTA DEFEATED
SARAH PALIN.
CRITICS SAY IT’S CONFUSING AND
WEIRD, AND IT’S A SCAM.
BUT ADVOCATES LIKE MY NEXT GUEST
ARGUE IT GIVES VOTERS THE BEST
CHOICE TO ELECT A CANDIDATE THEY
ACTUALLY SUPPORT.
HERE WITH ME NOW, ANYWHERE VAN A
THAT BASSIST AND RANK CHOICE
EXPERT CHRIS MAUVE CHELLIC.
HOW HOW DID THIS WORK IN ALASKA?
I DON’T THINK THE RESULTS WERE
CONTROVERSIAL.
SARAH PALIN SAID IT THWARTED THE
WILL OF PEOPLE, BUT ISN’T IT
BETTER TO HAVE A BUNCH OF PEOPLE
TO CHOOSE FROM AND DECIDE WHO
YOU LIKE BEST?
>> WE’RE AMERICANS AND WE LIKE
TO HAVE CHOICE.
AND IN ALASKA THEY HAD A OPEN
PRIMARY WHERE ALL THE CANDIDATES
RUN ARE, AND THEN THE TOP FOUR
VOTE GETTERS GO TO THE GENERAL
ELECTION, AND THERE’S A RANK
CHOICE VOTING.
AND YOU RANK YOUR CANDIDATE YOUR
FIRST CHOICE, YOUR SECOND
CHOICE, YOUR THIRD CHOICE.
AND THERE WAS NO MAJORITY
WINNER, AND BEG WITH ITCH CAME
IN THIRD PLACE LAST, SO HE WAS
ELIMINATE, AND HIS SECOND
CHOICES BROKE FOR THE DEMOCRAT.
AND CHA -- THAT’S WHO WON THE
ELECTION.
IT WAS A FAIR, TRANSPARENT
PROCESS.
KENNEDY: LET’S TALK ABOUT THE
TONE OF ELECTION BECAUSE,
OBVIOUSLY, OUR ELECTIONS GO ON
FOR WAY, WAY TOO LONG.
IT’S 2022, WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES TWO
YEARS OUT.
THAT’S JUST HOW IT IS.
AND SOMETIMES THESE RACES GET
VERY, VERY NASTY.
AND I THINK PEOPLE ARE SICK AND
DISHEARTENED BY THE ENTIRE
PROCESS.
HOW DOES RANK CHOICE VOTING MAKE
IT SO THE RACES ARE LESS
ACRIMONIOUS, THAT THEY’RE JUST A
LITTLE LESS DIRTY?
>> WELL, THE NATIONAL GROUP,
FAIR VOTE, HAS DONE A STUDY ON
RANK CHOICE VOTING ELECTIONS
BECAUSE THERE’S MANY PLACES IN
THE UNITED STATES THAT USE THEM,
AND THEY FIND OUT THAT
CAMPAIGNING IS MORE CIVIL.
AND WHY’S THAT?
WELL, LOOK AT ALASKA WHERE
THERE’S GOING TO BE A REDO OF
THE ELECTION IN NOVEMBER, AND
IT’S GOING TO BE, BELL -- BEGICH
IS ASKING HIS SUPPORTERS, OF
COURSE, TO BE THE FIRST CHOICE,
BUT IF THEY WANT TO BE A SECOND
CHOICE, HE SAYS PUT IN PALIN.
AND THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IS
SAYING, HEY, RANK THE RED, RANK
YOUR REPUBLICANS.
AND SO THAT’S THE STRATEGY.
KENNEDY: IS THAT A BETTER
STRATEGY?
>> IT’S ABOUT PULLING PEOPLE IN.
YEAH, IT’S A BETTER STRATEGY
BECAUSE YOU’RE PULLING PEOPLE
IN.
NEGATIVE CAMPAIGNING, HIT PIECES
PUSH PEOPLE OUT.
IT’S A ZERO SUM GAME.
IS SO RANK CHOICE VOTING IS A
WHOLE FEW BALL GAME.
KENNEDY: IT’S REALLY
INTERESTING, BUT WHY ISN’T IT
MORE UNIFORMLY APPLIED?
IT’S KIND OF CONFUSING IN THAT
SOMETIMES YOU HAVE IT DURING
PRIMARY SEASON AND OTHER TIMES
YOU HAVE IT JUST FOR FEDERAL
CANDIDATES BOTH, YOU KNOW, LIKE
IN NEW YORK CITY, WHY DO WE HAVE
IT HERE ALL THE TIME?
>> WELL, THEY HAD IT BECAUSE
THAT WAS THE WAY THE STATE OR
THE CITY DECIDED TO HAVE IT
ELECTIONS.
THEY VOTED ON HAVING IT JUST IN
NOMINATING PRIMARIES.
AND, YOU KNOW, I HOPE IT, THE
WHOLE CITY COUNCIL -- THE NEW
YORK CITY COUNCIL IN THE ’30s
AND ’40s WAS ELECTED BY RANK
CHOICE VOTING, FROM PORTIONAL
RANK CHOICE VOTING WHICH IS WHAT
WE NEED FOR THE UNITED STATES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
YOU CAN HAVE IT FOR SINGLE
WINNERS, AND YOU CAN HAVE IT FOR
PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION.
AND WE HAVE A FEDERALIST SYSTEM,
AND WE HAVE ALL THESE
MUNICIPALITIES, SO THERE’S JUST
DIFFERENT VERSIONS OF IT.
IT’S WHAT PEOPLE DECIDE IN THEIR
LOCALITY WHAT THEY WANT.
AND ALASKA WANTED RANK CHOICE
VOTING.
THEY WANTED TO MOVE AWAY FROM
EXCLUSIVE, PARTISAN PRIMARIES
WHERE ALL THE CANDIDATES RUN IN
THE FIRST ROUND, AND THEN THE
TOP FOUR VOTE GETTERS ADVANCE,
GET FOUR CHOICES ON THE GENERAL
ELECTION BALLOT, AND THEN YOU
RANK THE CANDIDATE IN YOUR ORDER
OF PREFERENCE.
KENNEDY: OKAY --
>> CANDIDATES, CANDIDATES.
KENNEDY: -- CAN ONE LAST
QUESTION FOR YOU, AND THIS IS
VERY IMPORTANT, WE ONLY HAVE 10
SECONDS.
ARE YOU AND KIM -- THE BEST
RHYTHM SYSTEM THAT EVER EXISTED?
>> DAVE GROHL AND I WERE --
KENNEDY: THAT’S WHAT I MEANT.
MATT CAMERON, ARE YOU AND MATT
CAMERON THE BEST THERE EVER WAS?
>> YEAH, NOW WE ARE THE BEST
WITH -- WE’RE ABSOLUTELY
FABULOUS.
THIRD SECRET IS MY NEW ALBUM,
CHECK US OUT ON YOUR FAVORITE
STREAMING SERVICE, AND IT’S
MEMBERS OF NIRVANA AND
SOUNDGARDEN.
WE’VE PUT A NEW WIS ON THINGS
FOR THE 21ST CENTURY.
CHECK US OUT, THIRD SECRET.
KENNEDY: YEAH, IT’S AMAZING.
IT’S SO NICE TO SEE ALL OF YOU
TOGETHER WRITING MUSIC.
TWO FEMALE VOCALISTS.
IT’S WONDERFUL TO HEAR.
YOU’RE AMAZING AND
EXTRAORDINARY, AND I CAN’T WAIT
TO SEE YOU PLAY LIVE IN PERSON.
>> THANK YOU, KENNEDY.
THANKS FOR HAVING ME.