In the face of a 2018 municipal referendum that could result in a ranked ballot voting system over the traditional first-past-the-post method, one expert says the former isn’t as complicated as it may be portrayed.

"This is not rocket science. [Ranked voting] is part of the way we think about many things in life," Johnathan Rose, associated professor of political science at Queen’s University and former academic director of the Ontario Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform, said on Thursday afternoon.

"I teach a class on electoral systems and I say to the students that when they ask their housemate to go get coffee and they ask ‘what do you want?’ You say, ‘I’ll take this and if they don’t have that I’ll take this instead.’"

The 2018 municipal election is scheduled for Oct. 22. In addition to the mayoral and councillor candidates, the ballot will also include a question about whether residents want to use a ranked ballot voting system in future municipal elections.

"The main difference is that the voter is given greater choice in ranked ballots, so rather than marking an ‘X’ in one place, the voter gets to rank their candidates," Rose said. "The other difference is that in first past the post, the winner is someone who has the most votes, which is what we call plurality, which is often not a majority. It is common, normal, to win with less than 50 per cent of the votes."

Currently, Kingston and London are the only Ontario municipalities seriously considering changing their electoral system to ranked ballots.

"I think [ranked voting] is ideal at the municipal level because normally there aren’t parties. There are, of course, candidates on the right and candidates on the left, but it also allows voters to choose candidates who are most suitable for their ideological perspective," Rose said.

First past the post still works, though Canada is in the minority of countries that utilize it, Rose said.

"There’s tradition — ‘it’s the way we’ve always done it,’ ‘if it ain’t broke why try to fix it.’ These are all claims that people make," Rose said. "You take away the United States and India and there aren’t many countries that have it. Most use a different form of systems that actually translate preferences into results. That’s all an electoral system does: what is the best way to translate what you want into what you get.

"First past the post is a bit of a blunt instrument. It certainly works well — some would say there’s no need to change — but it’s about time we thought about or experimented with different ways of making choices."

One thing that didn’t add up for Rose is the estimated cost of changing from first past the post to ranked ballot voting for the 2018 election. City staff have estimated that the 2022 election, should it be by a ranked ballots system, would cost $250,000 to $300,000 or more than the 2014 municipal election, which cost $551,105. They said in a July 2016 report that should council decide to move to ranked voting, "additional significant investments would be required in the form of human resources, technological resources and financial resources."

"It’s going to be the same ballot, but instead of putting an ‘X’ beside a name, the instructions will say, ‘rank the candidates, [with] one being the most preferred option to determine your choices.’ That’s it," Rose said. "I can’t imagine a 50 per cent increase to implement ranked ballots. That seems absurdly large."

In an effort to educate residents before the referendum, the city will be hosting four open houses next Wednesday and Thursday.

"It’s important that voters understand how ranked ballot voting works because their answers to the municipal referendum question will determine how they elect mayor and council going forward," city clerk John Bolognone said in a news release.

Rose said he’ll be attending one of the Wednesday open houses.

"I’m really looking forward to the information session because I hope it isn’t explained as complicated. It isn’t, really," Rose said.

The open houses on Wednesday will be held at City Hall (216 Ontario St.) from 2 to 4 p.m. and at Sir John A. Macdonald Public School (529 St. Martha St.) from 6 to 8 p.m. The Thursday open houses will be from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Invista Centre (1350 Gardiners Rd.) and from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Glenburnie Fire Hall (1485 Unity Rd.).

The city’s news release said that the open houses will launch an education campaign on ranked ballot voting that will continue until the 2018 municipal election. To learn more about ranked ballot voting, go online to www.cityofkingston.ca/rankedvoting.

scrosier@postmedia.com

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