It was celebration time at Community Hall yesterday.
Both Boundary and Bonner County have reached their respective goals for signatures on petitions supporting the Open Primary Initiative in Idaho.
So, volunteers gathered to enjoy the achievement and to gain some valuable information about petition drive progress statewide and about how the Initiative will work if it receives the green light from Idaho voters.
Still lots of work to do to reach the goals 62,896 signatures in 18 Idaho counties, but the outlook is upbeat with so much success this early.
Signing these petitions and reaching the required amount by deadline time in the spring will ensure that the measure will appear on the ballot in the 2024 Idaho general election.
At that time all registered voters can decide if they would like the state to have an Open Primary with ranked choice voting.
As Reclaim Idaho co-founder Luke Mayville explained yesterday, if passed, this measure will give all voters a stronger voice in elections, regardless of party affiliation.
In the primary, voters will simply vote for their preferred candidate from a field rather than having to choose a party ballot.
Later, in the general election, as many as four candidates will be on the ballot for each office. Voters will rank these four. From the field a top candidate will be selected.
This measure will also put more responsibility on candidates to work harder to earn their votes rather than simply taking party votes as for granted.
In short, voters will have a stronger voice in who gets elected and, regardless of party affiliation, candidates will be encouraged to pay more attention to the voters rather than to the party.
Definitely a win-win for all voters and it will add a shot of adrenalin to elections in general.
Luke also noted that, even though Bonner and Boundary Counties have reached their quota of signatures for the Initiative, any new signatures from these counties will be welcome.
The goal is to reach the required amount and then some.
So, if you are local and still haven't signed, you can can sign a petition at La Chic Boutique at 107 Main downtown Sandpoint.
In short, yesterday marked a great celebration for "the people" in Idaho.
Congratulations to all the volunteers who are working so hard for this cause.
Happy Sunday.
Boundary County Open Primary volunteers turn over their petitions to Alicia Abbott.
Linda, the mother of the amazing Luke Mayville.
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