I am writing to defend the new ranked-choice voting law currently being threatened by opponents in the Legislature, and to clarify the false perception that it’s too confusing to understand.

I have full confidence that Maine voters understood the pros and cons of the legislation. Yet, it turns out, one doesn’t even need to graduate from the sixth grade to understand the system. As a middle school debate coach, I remember our program successfully using ranked-choice voting as a debate topic for the 2015-16 season.

It is clear that people of all ages understand and now demand the opportunity to rank candidates for public office in order of preference. I urge fellow Mainers to contact their legislators immediately to demonstrate their support for the law and implementation in time for the 2018 election cycle.

Amelia Melanson

Cape Elizabeth

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