LETTER: Dysfunction in Carson City?

On June 7, a Las Vegas Review-Journal editorial addressed legislative dysfunction, of which we have ample examples. The editorial concluded that a full-time Legislature will not solve these problems. Hyper-partisanship is mentioned, but the only concrete solution offered was to reduce the number of bills each session. Question 3, which is open primaries with ranked-choice voting in general elections, would also address legislative dysfunction by focusing on hyper-partisanship.

Alaska adopted similar reforms in 2022, which put candidates in top-of-the-ticket races on the same primary ballot, and voters picked one in each race. We already do this with our nonpartisan elections. The top four candidates moved to the general election, where Alaskan voters ranked candidates by preference. The process went smoothly with only a few hiccups.

Alaskans elected a conservative GOP governor, a moderate Republican senator, and a moderate Democratic congresswoman. More Republicans were also elected to Alaska’s legislature than Democrats, so nothing earth-shattering. But then something transformative happened. In both houses, legislators formed cross-party coalitions to tamp down extremism. When a House member submitted a bill to repeal the new election reforms, the cross-party Senate coalition stood in opposition, so the bill died.

Are open primaries with general election ranked-choice voting a silver bullet? No. But do these reforms produce something more functional than the status quo and are the reforms more practical than moving to a full-time legislature? Many indicators point to yes and yes.