The Democrat secretary of state who single-handedly removed former\u200b President Donald Trump from Maine’s GOP presidential primary ballot \u2063is a\u200c prime example of the flaws of\u2064 ranked-choice voting<\/a> (RCV) \u2063and the dangers it poses to our\u2062 democracy.<\/p>\n

Shenna Bellows, a former ACLU lawyer\u200b with a strong dislike for Trump, proudly shared\u2064 a video where \u2063she explained how \u200bshe used the preference list scheme to\u200d win the\u200c 2020 \u200bsecretary of state election. In ranked-choice voting, also known as “rigged-choice voting”\u200b by critics, voters\u200b rank candidates by preference.\u2062 If no candidate receives a majority of votes, the candidate with the \u200cfewest votes is eliminated, and their votes are redistributed \u2064to the \u2062voters’ second-choice candidates. This process continues until one candidate has \u2063a majority \u200bof votes, even if they received \u200dfewer\u2064 “first-choice” votes than others.<\/p>\n

In the video, Bellows reveals how she persuaded her colleagues \u2062in the Democrat-controlled legislature to consider her as their second choice \u200cwhen voting\u2063 for the\u200b secretary of state position.<\/p>\n

According\u2063 to the Portland Press Herald, Bellows advanced through four\u200c rounds of ballot tabulation using ranked-choice voting to\u200d secure \u2063the nomination.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Bellows \u2062proudly states, “I’m definitely sure I had more No. 2\u2064 votes than anybody \u2062else. And, you know, end of the story, I became \u200bMaine’s first female secretary of state.”<\/p>\n

However,\u2063 this was just the beginning of the\u200b story.<\/p>\n

\u2018Mind-Boggling and Comical\u2019 <\/h2>\n
Bellows, a political opportunist, made headlines recently when she unilaterally decided that former President Trump \u2064should be disqualified from the ballot, citing his alleged involvement \u2064in the \u2062January 6, 2021 Capitol riot. Despite no conviction \u2063for any crime, Bellows took it upon herself to exclude Trump from the electoral process.<\/p>\n
Trump has appealed Bellows’ decision, arguing that she exceeded her authority under Maine law and made multiple errors \u200cof law.<\/p>\n
Legal experts have criticized Bellows’ decision, with one calling it “mind-boggling \u2062and comical.”<\/p>\n
Ranked-choice voting has\u200b become\u2064 a contentious issue, with Democrats using its complexities \u2063to their advantage and diminishing voter\u200b confidence in elections. \u200bThe\u200b system has allowed less popular Democrats to defeat more popular Republicans in races in Maine and Alaska.<\/p>\n
Despite the controversy surrounding ranked-choice voting,\u2063 Bellows remains a \u200cstaunch advocate for the\u200c system, applauding the defeat of\u200c a bill that would have repealed it in Maine.<\/p>\n
As the debate over ranked-choice voting continues, it is\u2064 clear that this voting scheme poses \u200dsignificant threats to our democracy and undermines the principles of due process and\u200c equal protection.<\/p>\n

A \u2018Trojan Horse\u2019<\/h2>\n
Shenna Bellows is a leading proponent of\u2063 ranked-choice\u200b voting<\/a>, a system that has \u2064been \u200dcriticized for its complexity and potential \u200bfor disenfranchisement. The scheme has been used to elect\u200c preferred candidates of\u2063 left-leaning organizations, and its proponents argue that\u200c it allows for \u200dmore \u2064moderate candidates to be elected.<\/p>\n
However,\u200b critics argue that ranked-choice voting is a scam that \u2062can rig elections and disenfranchise voters. In the New \u200bYork mayoral primary, nearly 140,000 ballots were discarded, resulting in a significant disenfranchisement of voters.<\/p>\n
While \u2062some states\u2064 have banned \u200branked-choice voting, others are considering implementing it. The debate over this voting \u200dscheme is far from\u2064 over, and its impact on our democracy remains a contentious\u2062 issue.<\/p>\n
Shenna Bellows may champion ranked-choice voting, but her actions demonstrate a disregard for voters’ choices and a willingness \u200dto\u200d exclude candidates she disagrees with from the electoral process.<\/p>\n
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\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n
rnrn <\/p>\n
How\u200d does the use of ranked-choice voting in \u200cMaine’s\u2063 election \u2064raise concerns about potential abuse and \u2063manipulation of the voting system \u200cfor political \u200bgain<\/h2>\n
The use of \u2064ranked-choice voting (RCV) in Maine’s recent\u200b secretary of state election has raised concerns about the flaws and dangers associated with this \u2064voting system. Shenna \u2062Bellows, the \u200cDemocrat secretary of state,\u2062 proudly shared a video explaining how she utilized the preference list\u2063 scheme to win the\u2063 2020 election.<\/p>\n
In ranked-choice voting, voters rank candidates by preference.\u200c If no candidate\u2063 receives\u200d a majority of votes, the\u2063 candidate with \u200bthe fewest\u200c votes is eliminated, \u200cand \u2062their votes are redistributed to the\u200d voters’ second-choice candidates. This process continues until one candidate has a majority \u200bof votes, even if they\u200c received fewer “first-choice” votes \u200bthan others.<\/p>\n
Bellows revealed in the video how\u200c she convinced her colleagues in the Democrat-controlled legislature to consider her as their second choice when voting for the secretary of state position. She \u2063advanced\u200d through four rounds of ballot tabulation using \u200branked-choice voting to secure\u2062 the nomination.<\/p>\n
However, Bellows’ actions did not stop there. \u200dShe unilaterally decided that former President Donald Trump should be disqualified from the ballot in Maine, citing his alleged involvement in the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot. Despite Trump not being convicted of any crime, Bellows excluded him from the electoral process.<\/p>\n
Trump has appealed Bellows’ decision, arguing that she exceeded her authority under Maine law and made multiple errors of \u2064law. Legal experts have criticized Bellows’ decision, with one describing \u2063it\u200c as \u2063”mind-boggling and comical.”<\/p>\n
This incident in\u200d Maine highlights the\u2062 potential dangers and flaws of ranked-choice voting. Critics argue that\u2064 it \u200callows for political opportunism and manipulation of the voting \u200dprocess. Instead of focusing solely on the preference and support\u2062 of voters, the system allows\u200d for strategic rankings and back-room negotiations.<\/p>\n
Some \u200cargue that ranked-choice voting undermines<\/a> the principle of majority rule. The candidate who ends up with a majority of votes may have \u200cnot received the most “first-choice” votes and may not \u200ctruly reflect the will of \u2063the majority \u200dof voters.<\/p>\n
Additionally, ranked-choice voting can be confusing and complicated\u200b for voters to understand. \u2064The process of \u2064elimination and redistribution of votes can be difficult to follow and \u2063may discourage voter \u2064participation.<\/p>\n
While proponents of ranked-choice voting argue that it promotes more civil and \u2064inclusive campaigns, the Maine incident raises concerns about the potential abuse and \u2063manipulation of the\u200d system for political gain.<\/p>\n
As\u200b the \u2064United States continues to evaluate and experiment \u200cwith \u200cdifferent voting systems, it \u200bis essential to carefully consider the \u200cpros and cons of ranked-choice voting.\u2064 The \u200bintegrity \u200dand\u2064 fairness of the electoral process should always be a top priority\u2062 to ensure a truly democratic system that reflects the will of the people.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Democrat secretary of state, Shenna Bellows, exemplifies the drawbacks of ranked-choice voting (RCV) and its threat to the republic. She unilaterally removed former President Donald Trump from Maine’s GOP primary ballot, showcasing the failures of RCV. Bellows, a former ACLU lawyer with a clear disdain for Trump, even boasted about her actions in a video<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":656,"featured_media":2144591,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2144590","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2144590","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/656"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2144590"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2144590\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2144591"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2144590"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2144590"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2144590"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}