Politics in the current era are hotly polarized. In a general election, you usually have two choices of candidates: D or R, chosen by the partisan devout in party primaries. You may like neither choice. If voters ranked their top choices of candidates instead, they would be more likely to elect centrist candidates who have broad support. Ranked-choice voting can be used in both general elections and primaries, narrowing a large field of candidates to a few who advance to the general election, or in a traditional party primary system to pick winners. Proponents of the system are trying to spread it across the country. They’ve pursued ballot issues to coax change in other states and they’re trying to gather support for a similar drive in Ohio. Alaska and Maine vote by ranked choice. University Heights is a rare city that’s considered the switch. A charter review commission saw ranked-choice voting as a way to fight voters’ perceptions that their ballots don’t count, as well as promote civility among candidates who’d have to appeal to a broader range of the community to secure second-choice votes. The Cuyahoga County elections board is not currently equipped for ranked voting, and critics have all sorts of arguments for why it’s a bad idea. Unsurprising, considering the voting system would undermine the influence of political parties. -- Laura |
Overnight Scores and Weather |
Guardians at Texas Rangers: Guardians can’t hold 5-2 lead as Texas rallies for 6-5 win with four runs in the eighth Northeast Ohio weather forecast: Afternoon showers, thunderstorms possible |
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Ranked-choice voting already is being used for local elections in big cities like New York, Minneapolis and San Francisco. Alaska and Maine use it statewide. (cleveland.com file photo) |
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Civil discourse: University Heights wanted to increase voter participation. So its charter review commission suggested moving elections away from picking a single candidate for elected city offices toward a ranked-choice system. Advocates say ranked voting helps fight political polarization and improves civil discourse by helping to elect centrist candidates who have broad support, but critics say the system is is too complicated. The city didn’t implement the change, but Sabrina Eaton explores the idea in our Civil Discourse series. Food banks: As federal pandemic relief measures have phased out in recent months, thousands more Northeast Ohioans living on the edge of poverty have flocked to the Greater Cleveland Food Bank’s bimonthly distribution events -- willing to wait in sometimes miles-long lines, idling in their cars, in anticipation of a box of food to make it through the month. Hannah Drown reports Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) emergency allotments ended in March, with an average of $172 in benefits a month lost for 673,000 households throughout Ohio. War criminal: Who was Jugo Vidic? A skilled butcher, a husband and father, attentive landlord, small-business owner, demanding boss, sexual harasser and meat scofflaw, all while prosecutors say he was a war criminal in the former Yugoslavia. Adam Ferrise reports prosecutors arrested the 55-year-old Vidic in Parma Heights after he was accused of lying on his visa application and to the FBI about his war-crimes conviction for killing a former co-worker during a military siege in 1991. Crime-solving tools: The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is using new, cutting-edge technology to help police agencies solve crimes faster, examining guns and drug samples in a way few have ever seen. State Attorney General Dave Yost and lab specialists showed off the equipment last week, offering insight and explanations into analysts’ work. Olivia Mitchell puts what we’ve seen on television shows of crime-scene investigation into deeper context. Today in Ohio: House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan on Thursday accused the head of the Federal Trade Commission of “harassing” Twitter to the point of obsession. We’re talking about Jordan’s headline grabs this week and how Democrats are challenging his actions on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour news podcast. |
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Issue 1 turnout: The state’s top election official has said he wouldn’t be surprised if voter turnout for the upcoming Aug. 8 election is near the historically low levels of the August primary election last year. But what if turnout in Cuyahoga County or other large counties is more typical? Andrew Tobias reports even modestly higher voter turnout could have a major and even decisive impact on whether State Issue 1, which would make it harder to amend the state constitution, is approved. Issue 1 ads: Ohioans soon will see the first major advertising in favor of State Issue 1 — but it’s not coming from the campaign organized to pass it, reports Andrew Tobias. Protect Women Ohio said it will spend $3 million to defeat State Issue 1, including $2 million they said would pay to air a 30-second ad that will appear on TV stations around the state. Crime victims: A new law, passed at warp speed by Ohio lawmakers last month, is keeping identities of crime victims out of public view around the state. What’s known as Marsy’s Law previously allowed crime victims, if they wish, to request that their names be redacted from court documents released to the public. But Jake Zuckerman reports a tweak to the law instead requires police departments to assume that crime victims seek privacy unless those victims say otherwise. Defense bill: The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives on Friday voted largely along party lines to approve an $886 billion defense authorization bill that contained controversial provisions that would block the Pentagon from paying for service members’ abortion-related expenses or transgender care. Sabrina Eaton reports all 10 of Ohio’s Republicans in Congress supported the bill, which passed by a 219 to 210 margin. All five of the state’s Democrats opposed the legislation. |
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Wildfire smoke: Northeast Ohio residents may notice a slight haze today as the Canada wildfires continue to burn, sending smoke to the region, Megan Sims reports. Punch the cow: Turns out Punch the bull is not actually a bull, but a cow. And she’s relaxing at the Happy Trails Animal Sanctuary in Ravenna after her adventure roaming Cleveland. A mounted officer said in his 17 years, he had heard of a horse, an alligator and smaller animals running loose in the city. But never a cow, reports John Tucker. |
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Howard Hanna: Potential homebuyers may notice a difference in the way they search for homes online as real estate broker Howard Hanna pulls its Northeast Ohio listings from sites like Redfin, which do not require registration. Megan Sims reports the real estate giant began its experiment three weeks ago, which would require customers to register with its site or on other real estate sites to view its Northeast Ohio listings. Ashland hospital: The only hospital to offer labor and delivery services in Ashland County will close its birthing ward next month. University Hospitals Samaritan Medical Center in Ashland will close its labor and delivery department on Aug. 8 because of a lack of staff, reports Julie Washington. |
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Shooting arrest: A second man has been taken into custody almost a week after nine people were shot in Cleveland’s Warehouse District. Kevin Rual Del Valle-Salaman, 24, was arrested Saturday in Lorain. Authorities did not mention how Valle-Salaman is involved in the case, Megan Sims reports. Gun choice: A 9 mm pistol is the criminals’ weapon of choice in the Cleveland area, reports Molly Walsh. The guns are easy to hide, easy to get and becoming more lethal. The number of guns used in crimes that have been traced and recovered by law enforcement in Cleveland increased by more than 50% from 2020 to 2021. Car thefts: Parma officials late Thursday filed a federal public nuisance lawsuit against Kia and Hyundai over the spike in thefts that came after the carmakers for years built cars without anti-theft technology. Adam Ferrise reports that Parma joins a growing list of cities, including Cleveland, that sued the companies over the nationwide explosion of car thefts following social media videos in 2021 that showed how someone could easily steal the cars using a USB cable and a screwdriver. |
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Pickleball: Pickle in the Land is coming to Cleveland, reports Marc Bona. The three-day pickleball tournament at the Huntington Convention Center will feature more than 1,000 competitors across 30 courts, with $25,000 in prize money at stake. Alicia Keys: Thousands of fans at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Saturday were excited and ready to sing and Alicia Keys gave them everything they wanted in a well-paced 90-minute set, Malcolm X Abram reports. Karamu House: The Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation awarded a $4 million challenge grant to Karamu House, the oldest Black performing arts institute in the nation. Joey Morona reports the foundation will match each dollar, up to $4 million, in additional donations from other foundations, corporations, and donors collected through the end of 2024. Best patios: From waterfront tables to cozy courtyards, Greater Cleveland has a broad array of outdoor dining spaces. You’ll find waterfalls, lakefronts, riverbanks and other natural attractions, plus spots to take your dog. Paris Wolfe lists them while there’s still plenty of summer to enjoy. House of the Week: Built in 2019, 551 Cahoon Road in Bay Village has four bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms in over 3,500 square feet of living space. Joey Morona reports the home is listed for $950,000. |
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