Maine tried something this week that has never been tried before. It became the first to hold a statewide primary using a system called “ranked choice voting” — in which voters don’t simply indicate their choice on the ballot but “rate” the candidates in order of their preference. Rob Richie of FairVote.org explains the system and weighs the pros and cons of such a change in the voting process.
Mitt Romney was defeated at the Utah state Republican convention for the party’s endorsement in his bid for the Senate seat being vacated by Orrin Hatch. But does that mean he is in some difficulty in the upcoming June 26 primary? Bryan Schott of UtahPolicy.com says there is little chance Romney won’t be sworn in as the state’s next senator come January 2019.
In 1982, when George Deukmejian, a white Republican, and Thomas Bradley, a black Democrat, squared off in the race for governor of California — an election won by Deukmejian, in a surprise — the political world learned a new term: the “Bradley Effect”: a reference to when voters will tell pollsters they will vote for a black candidate while planning all along to vote for the white candidate. But is it real? More and more historians say no. Ken Khachigian, a key Deukmejian staffer, explains the reasons why he thinks his candidate was the victor.
And it was 55 years ago this week when Medgar Evers, the civil rights leader from Mississippi, was assassinated in the driveway of his home in Jackson. His older brother, Charles Evers, talks about those days and how he sees racial progress in the time since the 1963 horror.
Language Advisory: Charles Evers uses the “N” word as part of his description of how things have changed.
Music used in this podcast:
Mrs. Robinson by Simon & Garfunkel
One More Chance by The Moondoggies
Black Wind Howlin’ by Samantha Fish