The Fair Representation Act would transform Colorado’s congressional map from 8 single-winner districts into 2 multi-winner districts. Voters would elect representatives using proportional ranked choice voting.
Gerrymandering would be nearly eliminated, every election would be competitive, and Colorado voters would have far more power than they do today.
With more choices in the general election and proportional outcomes, the Fair Representation Act will create more opportunities for urban Republicans, rural Democrats, independents, women, and people of color.
Improved Partisan Representation
Proportional ranked choice voting elects candidates from each party reflecting the political makeup of that region.
Colorado’s statewide partisanship is 55% Democrat / 45% Republican. The Fair Representation Act would preserve the Democratic majority, but also award a fair number of seats to Republicans and most likely create one swing seat.
Better Racial Representation
The Fair Representation Act increases the number of districts where communities of color have the power to elect a candidate of their choice.
In the district with 5 representatives, any candidate earning at least 17% of the vote wins a seat. In the district with 3 representatives, any candidate earning over 25% of votes wins a seat. These thresholds create the opportunity for more groups to have a seat at the table, compared to single-winner districts where candidates need a majority or near-majority to win a seat.
With the Fair Representation Act, Latino voters are over the threshold in one district, meaning Latino voters have the deciding power to elect at least one candidate of their choice (whereas with single-member districts, Latino voters had no sole power-to-elect a representative, despite making up 16% of the state’s population).
The “power-to-elect” threshold represents a floor for representation, not a ceiling: candidates of color are most likely to succeed in these districts, but may also be elected in other districts.
An End to Gerrymandering
Under the Fair Representation Act, the ability to gerrymander for partisan advantage would be drastically reduced. With fewer lines to draw and proportional representation in every district, the redistricting process becomes more fair and the possibility for gerrymandering is nearly eliminated.
More Competitive Elections
With larger geographic districts, it is harder to draw districts in ways that pack partisans together. What’s more, the Fair Representation Act’s criteria for district-drawing encourages fair partisan representation.
Eliminating “winner-take-all” rules will encourage both Republicans and Democrats to compete for votes in every district. Every multi-winner district in Colorado would be likely to elect at least one member of each major party.
Even in districts where one or more seats are considered “safe” for one party, candidates from that party will be competing against other members of their party, creating healthy competition both within and between parties.
When elections are competitive, representatives are accountable to voters and have a greater incentive to champion policies that have broad support.
A More Expressive Ballot
In proportional ranked choice voting, voters have the option to rank candidates in order of preference: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and so forth. Voters are free to express their honest preferences without fear of “spoiler candidates” or “wasted votes”.
Learn more here about how ranked choice in multi-winner districts improves our elections.
