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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017/06/05 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study SessionfffSt. Louis Park OFFICIAL MINUTES M I N N E S 0 T A CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL STUDY SESSION ST. LOUIS PARK, MINNESOTA JUNE 5, 2017 The meeting convened at 6:00 p.m. Councilmembers present: Mayor Jake Spano, Tim Brausen, Steve Hallfin, Gregg Lindberg, Anne Mavity, Thom Miller, and Susan Sanger. Staff present: City Manager (Mr. Harmening), City Attorney (Mr. Mattick), Deputy City Manager/Human Resources Director (Ms. Deno), City Clerk (Ms. Kennedy), and Recording Secretary (Ms. Pappas). Guest: Jeanne Massey, Executive Director, Fair Vote Minnesota; Deb Brinkman, League of Women Voters. 1. Ranked Choice Voting It was noted that the council previously discussed the topic of Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) on several occasions in 2006, 2010 and 2012. Most recently, on April 17, 2017, the city council conducted a public hearing to consider the first reading of an ordinance amending the City Charter by eliminating the need for a municipal primary election and changing the candidate filing requirements. During the public hearing the council took public testimony from a number of residents regarding the topic of RCV. At the conclusion of the public hearing, the council directed staff to schedule a follow-up discussion at a study session. Jeanne Massey, the Executive Director at Fair Vote Minnesota, presented information on RCV to the council. She explained that the process allows voters to rank candidates in order of their preferences. Winners are declared once they have reached a pre -determined threshold of votes, typically 50% +1. She provided an overview of the history of RCV in both Minneapolis and St. Paul and provided examples of voters' experiences. Ms. Massey pointed out that voter turnout was over 80,000 in Minneapolis in 2013, the highest turnout in 12 years. Additionally, nearly 70% of voters polled in Minneapolis want to continue using RCV. Ms. Massey also noted voters in St. Paul have found it manageable to use both the RCV and non-RCV methods on the same ballot. Councilmember Miller asked if there is data to support voters' support of RCV in Minneapolis. Ms. Massey said yes, there is exit polling data. Ms. Massey and the council discussed the tabulation of results and the ability for St. Louis Park to export data from the DS200 ballot tabulator. Councilmember Sanger asked what a realistic timeline would be for RCV results to be tabulated in St. Louis Park. Ms. Kennedy stated the time is variable because it is dependent on many factors, including the number of candidates and the number of rounds that are needed to determine a winner. She noted that both Minneapolis and St. Paul have chosen to tabulate in different ways, but neither process is completely automated. She gave an overview of the process Minneapolis used to tabulate results. Ms. Kennedy estimated it could take staff anywhere from 3-5 days to tabulate results, depending on a number of factors. Ms. Kennedy stated she does not want to over -promise to the council about how long the tabulation process would take, but she also noted the decision related to the process that is used would be up to the council, and staff's role is to implement the process. Special Study Session Minutes -2- June 5, 2017 Councilmember Hallfin asked when races are within a couple of percentage points and a recount is needed, is there data on actual recounts when ranked choice voting is used. Ms. Massey stated she has not seen this data, and this would depend on what the council sets up as the process for St. Louis Park. She added there are rules for recounts, ties and all conditions. She also pointed out there are procedures set up to minimize human error, and there is more integrity in machines today than in the past. Councilmember Lindberg asked who the city's election officials are who would be administering the process. Ms. Kennedy stated it is her job as St. Louis Park City Clerk. Councilmember Lindberg added that transparency and trust are important in the RCV process and in data verification. He asked how the city would audit this process. Ms. Kennedy stated that would be a policy decision, noting that Minneapolis chose to hire a firm to perform an independent audit of their results. Councilmember Sanger asked if the city could adopt a provision to eliminate someone who mathematically could not possibly win an election. Ms. Kennedy stated yes, the council could choose to include that in the rules related to the administration of RCV. Councilmember Sanger also asked if it would then be helpful to pay election judges to help facilitate the process. Ms. Kennedy stated again that it is up to the council to determine the process and procedures, and staff will do what is necessary to carry out those processes and procedures as effectively and efficiently as possible. Councilmember Miller asked if there might be an app for this process and also if staff knew what expense there might be to the city to change to the RCV method. Ms. Kennedy stated she did not have cost information but noted that voter education and outreach, legal fees, and staff time would be the most costly pieces of the process. Ms. Massey stated that Fair Vote Minnesota helps pay for voter education, which includes videos, brochures and outreach. Ms. Brinkman from League of Women Voters stated they would also partner with the city related to RCV education. Councilmember Hallfin stated that obviously Fair Vote Minnesota is putting the full court press on St. Louis Park for RCV. He asked if there are any other cities implementing it. Ms. Kennedy stated Brooklyn Park considered it last year, but their council voted against implementing. The City of Duluth considered it in 2015, but the question was defeated on the ballot. Hopkins has discussed it and continues to monitor the idea. Ms. Massey stated that Crystal also had considered it, as well as Bloomington. Councilmember Mavity stated St. Louis Park has a really intelligent resident voter population, and people understand the complexity. She added that staff may believe this will be a difficult change, but it is worth the investment in the long term. She stated that this is about enfranchisement. RCV will improve the city's elections by engaging more residents and keeping the process more civil. Councilmember Mavity noted that staff will have a heavy lift, but they have the capability to do it and do it well. She stated she is fully supportive and would like to move forward with this conceptually. Councilmember Sanger stated she agreed with everything Councilmember Mavity stated. She noted that she would like to send this to the Charter Commission to request their support and to have the ordinance completed and the process in place in time for the 2019 election cycle. She added voters will handle this well, and many residents are in favor of it. She asked Ms. Kennedy Special Study Session Minutes -3- June 5, 2017 and staff to give thought as to what it would take to simplify the administration of this process and make it feasible. Councilmember Brausen agreed with Councilmembers Sanger and Mavity and stated he is in favor of RCV. He noted he would not have a problem spending $5,000-10,000 on voter outreach and education efforts. He added that St. Louis Park has eliminated the primary, and now we would be able to address a four-way race with RCV. He is in favor of it. Councilmember Miller is also in favor, stating it is a more progressive method and encourages better candidates and elections. While he thinks it might be a higher cost, RCV is coming, and it would be best for the city to move in that direction. Councilmember Hallfin stated he has not ever seen a nasty election in St. Louis Park and is not worried about that as an issue. He added RCV seems fine but noted that the council has already voted to eliminate the primary. He stated that they can decide as a council to change the charter or to bring it to the voters. Councilmember Lindberg stated he has more questions and asked what would be enhanced and how it would benefit the community. He stated he appreciates the advocates who presented, but added they have not yet provided the opportunity for everyone in the community to give their opinion. He stated the council needs to provide this opportunity on the front end and guessed it may take a lot more than $5,000-10,000 for a robust voter education and outreach campaign. He stated it will be important to have more conversation about RCV in the community before moving forward with adoption of an ordinance or implementation. Mayor Spano stated he has spent a lot of time reading about RCV, adding he is cautious, but not because it is not a good idea. He agreed with Councilmember Hallfin that St. Louis Park has civil elections, and campaign money is less of an issue in the city. He stated that RCV could change that dynamic but he has not seen enough of a problem in St. Louis Park for RCV to have an impact. He would like to see voter turnout over a couple more election cycles in Minneapolis and St. Paul and discuss how the change could impact elections from a race equity perspective before making a decision. Mayor Spano stated he would like to see data from other cities in the United States that have used RCV for 3-5 election cycles. He stated this is a huge change to the way councilmembers are elected, so he wants to be certain that it is going to benefit all voters. Mayor Spano added he has heard from some people in the community that would not be in favor of this change. Councilmember Miller stated he respects everyone's comments, adding he would like to move forward with more research and discussion on RCV before proposing any changes to the Charter. Councilmember Sanger referenced Mayor Spano's concerns about wanting more data and asked Ms. Massey if she could provide voter turnout data from Minneapolis and St. Paul in races that were contested and to see how RCV impacted the turnout. Ms. Massey stated she would provide this data, adding that RCV encourages engagement, as well as voter turnout. She added it also gives more choice to voters and increases rapid diversification of candidates. Councilmember Mavity stated the council has five members who want to move forward in the process and get more information. She added the more specific information the council can get, the more informed they would be. Special Study Session Minutes -4- June 5, 2017 Mr. Harmening suggested this not go directly to the Charter Commission at this time and that it be discussed again by the council. He stated there is no perfect voting system, but elections are fundamental to our community, and we need to think about how to engage people in this conversation. He added that how RCV impacts race equity efforts is something that also needs to be discussed. He stated it will take time but should be a priority to make a decision for the 2019 election, noting he will include RCV as an agenda item in the near future. Mr. Harmening stated additional questions from council on the topic can be directed to staff. The meeting adjourned at 7:28 p.m. _�.�.. Maw