Supreme Court Upholds Vote On Ranked Choice

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Created on Friday, 23 August 2024 16:45

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By JAMES BROOKS

Alaska Beacon

A ballot measure that could repeal Alaska’s ranked choice election system is headed to a vote in November, the Alaska Supreme Court confirmed today.

In a brief order, the court’s five members upheld a lower court decision that certified Ballot Measure 2, which would repeal the laws that created the state’s ranked choice general election and open primary election. 

The order came shortly after justices heard oral arguments in an appeal claiming that the Alaska Division of Elections improperly certified the measure.

“Today the Court quickly affirmed that the Division of Elections properly interpreted and applied the law in qualifying this initiative for the November ballot,” said Senior Assistant Attorney General Lael Harrison, in a statement issued by email. “The Department of Law is grateful to the Court for their timely review and decision on this issue, in plenty of time for the Division’s upcoming ballot printing deadlines.”

At issue in the appeal was whether the Division of Elections could legally allow petitioners to correct some flaws with petition signature books after they had been submitted to the division.

Plaintiffs had argued that the division did not have the power to allow post-deadline corrections under existing law, something the division has allowed since at least 2019. 

If plaintiffs had won, the division would have been required to discard some petition books, denying repeal supporters enough signatures for a vote this fall. 

Justices did not immediately explain their reasoning issued Thursday afternoon but said they affirm the lower court’s decision.

“I was very pleased the court was able to so quickly see through the smoke the other side was putting out,” said former Alaska Attorney General Kevin Clarkson, who represented proponents of the repeal. “Their questions at oral argument were very focused and demonstrated they understood the heart of the statutory interpretation issue they were being presented.”

Plaintiffs were represented by attorney Scott Kendall, who wrote portions of the state’s current election laws. Those were enacted by a different ballot measure in 2020. 

By text message, Kendall said he appreciates the fast ruling but that plaintiffs are disappointed by the ruling.

“We do not yet know the Court’s reasoning, but despite demonstrated irregularities in the Division of Elections’ handling of the … petition, they were obviously unwilling to reverse the superior court,” he said.

He noted that repeal backers are still in court, facing fines of nearly $100,000 after Alaska’s campaign finance regulator cited them for illegal fundraising.

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