Re: Danny Westneat’s column, “Democrats, you had one job” [April 26, Northwest]: on the Legislature’s failure to pass a drug bill reminded me of an old adage — “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting something different.”
It also reminded me of something I learned many years ago — “If you don’t like how people are behaving, check what their incentives are.”
In my view, the Legislature’s failure to compromise is exactly what we should expect given the incentives baked into our election system. Many elected officials made it through the primary thanks to the support of a small but committed group of voters who hold extreme views that are not representative of the majority in their districts. Politicians secure their place in the general election by pandering to this base.
If you’ve ever felt voting is like choosing between the lesser of two evils, this is why.
We need a new voting system, one that provides more options on the general election ballot and incentivizes candidates to reach out to all voters — not just their polarized base. We need ranked-choice voting.
Robert Poore, Seattle