Irvine City Council is holding deliberations for adopting RCV on June 9th at Irvine City Hall!

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If you live in Orange County, please come in-person to show support for RCV.  We will provide you a Cal RCV shirt if you don't already have one.  You're welcome to wear any purple shirt or outfit you'd like as well. 

 

If you LIVE in Irvine, take 5 minutes to take these steps:​
 

1. Submit an eComment
   Submit an eComment for RCV Agenda item here as a fast way to send your support to the council members Kathleeen Treseder, Melinda Liu and Betty Martinez-Franco who are leading this effort and to convince the others to vote yes on Tuesday.
   
   You can always view the agenda and pick the specific topic of RCV under section 5.1 here.
    

2. Submit an Email to the Council
   Write an email to irvinecitycouncil@cityofirvine.org with the subject line
   
   "Dear Mayor Agran and Irvine Councilmembers" 
   
   You'll want to urge the City Council to adopt Ranked Choice Voting for the city municipal elections and choose one or more of the talking points below to highlight:
    

   • Ranked Choice Voting ensures majority rule. This is a fundamental principle of our democracy. However, our current Irvine elections often elect winners with less than majority support.

   • RCV Increases voter turnout: Obviously, when people believe their vote won't make a difference, they are unlikely to cast a ballot. Voters in RCV jurisdictions are 17% more likely to turn out for municipal elections than those in non-RCV jurisdictions, according to a 2024 study published in Scient Direct. 

   • RCV eliminates the "spoiler effect," empowering voters to rank candidates without fear of wasting their vote. 

   • RCV results in more diverse representation, including more women, more people of color, as well as more diverse ideas and ideologies.

   • RCV encourages positive, issue-focused campaigns.
      

Lastly, if you will be at the City Council Meeting on June 9th in-person or via zoom, here are a few things to keep in mind:

 

Public comments in support of RCV SHOULD BE made by Irvine residents ONLY so that the Councilmembers see their constituents demanding this change, rather than outsider.  The comments may be done either in-person at city hall or online via Zoom. If you will be speaking in-person, sign in at one of the kiosks (they look like airplane check-in kiosks). If this is your first time, use the one inside the chambers where someone will help you. It's expected people will have anywhere from 90 seconds to 2-3 minutes to speak, so choose your words wisely.

Timing. Our Item is number 5.1; it is not likely to be heard until after 8pm. Out of an abundance of caution we are asking people to come in-person or sign in on Zoom at 8pm to be sure you don't miss it.

Speak via Zoom. Visit https://www.zoomgov.com/j/1600434844 and enter Passcode 272906. Provide your name in the Zoom application to allow the City Clerk to identify you when it is your time to speak. When item 5.1 comes up, use the "Raise Hand" button under Reactions on Zoom.

Speak in-person. If you can, please wear a purple-colored shirt. There will also be extra RCV purple shirts to borrow from Cal RCV. When item 5.1 comes up, please move to sit in the first 3-4 rows behind the public comment podium.

For your awareness. No food or drink allowed in Council Chambers, though they have never stopped people from bringing a water bottle. There is a bathroom and vending machine in the lobby, opposite the chambers.

 

Feel free to contact me (arash@calrcv) or Mari Fujii of Democrats of Greater Irvine (webgirrl@gmail.com) if you have any questions.

Thank you for all of your help and support. Please don't forget to support our efforts by making a donation for our Orange County / Irvine efforts here.

Looking forward to seeing you on the June 9th City Council meeting.  Let's bring RCV to Irvine together!