There are about seven months until the Democratic primary in Virginia and so far no candidates for Charlottesville City Council have registered with the Department of Elections.
There are two seats open as the terms of Brian Pinkston and Juandiego Wade expire at the end of 2025. The primary will be the first opportunity for the city to use ranked-choice voting to select nominees for the Democratic Party, but before then Charlottesville will use the system to select a name for the city’s holiday tree.
“In a ranked choice election, people don’t just vote for one candidate,” reads an information release sent out today. “They are given the opportunity to rank all the candidates in their order of preference: your 1st choice, 2nd choice, 3rd choice, and so on.”
In this particular matter, there are four choices. Perhaps you’ll have a hard time choosing between Treelor Swift, Oatmeal III, Spruce Lee, or Boots with Fir? Now you can rank them at the poll here.
“Ranked choice voting helps communities build consensus when there are several different options,” reads the release. “Even if your favorite doesn’t win, you can still help pick the winner with your backup choices.”
A winner will be announced on December 2. The 27th annual Grand Illumination takes place on December 6 at the Ting Pavilion.
Before you go: The time to write and research of this article is covered by paid subscribers to Charlottesville Community Engagement. In fact, this particular installment is from the November 25, 2024 edition of the newsletter. To ensure this research can be sustained, please consider becoming a paid subscriber or contributing monthly through Patreon.
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