HR 1189 IH

To provide that a State may use a proportional voting system for multiseat congressional districts, and for other purposes.

March 22, 2001

Ms. MCKINNEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on House Administration, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

To provide that a State may use a proportional voting system for multiseat congressional districts, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Voters' Choice Act'.

SEC. 2. MULTISEAT DISTRICTS PERMITTED FOR ELECTION OF REPRESENTATIVES FOR STATES WITH A PROPORTIONAL VOTING SYSTEM.

(a) IN GENERAL- Notwithstanding the Act entitled `An Act for the relief of Doctor Ricardo Vallejo Samala and to provide for congressional redistricting', approved December 14, 1967 (Public Law 90-196; 2 U.S.C. 2c), a State that is entitled to more than one Representative in Congress may establish a number of districts for election of Representatives that is less than the number of Representatives to which the State is entitled, if and only if, that State uses a system that meets the following conditions:

(1) It meets the constitutional standard of majority rule and of individuals having equal voting power.

(2) It ensures the election of any candidate who receives a share of votes cast that is at least one vote greater than one-third of the total votes cast in the multiseat district.

(b) NO RESTRICTION ON SELECTION- A State is not restricted to selecting systems that require candidates to obtain at least one vote more than one-third of the electorate in order to be elected. As long as the conditions specified in subsection (a) are met, a State may use systems that allow a smaller group of voters to elect Representatives.

(c) EQUALITY REQUIREMENT- In a State that uses multiseat districts, the number of residents per Representative in a district shall be equal for all Representatives elected.

(d) ONE-SEAT DISTRICTS ALLOWED- A State may use one-seat districts alone or in combination with multiseat districts.

SEC. 3. RELATION TO VOTING RIGHTS ACT OF 1965.

The rights and remedies established by this Act are in addition to all other rights and remedies provided by law, and the rights and remedies established by this Act shall not supersede, restrict, or limit the application of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.). Nothing in this Act authorizes or requires conduct that is prohibited by the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.).

SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING USE OF INSTANT RUNOFF VOTING IN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS.

It is the sense of Congress that:

(1) A State should award its electoral votes for President and Vice President to the candidates who receive a majority of the votes cast in the State for such offices.

(2) An instant runoff voting system is an effective and appropriate method for ensuring that one set of candidates will receive a majority of the votes cast in the State. Under instant runoff voting, voters rank their favorite and subsequent choice candidates, and if a majority has not voted for one candidate, the candidate with least number of votes is eliminated and another round of counting occurs. In the next round and each subsequent round, ballots are counted for the highest remaining candidate ranked on each ballot, and rounds continue until a candidate has received a majority of the votes cast.

(3) Each State should adopt an instant runoff voting system for the election of electors for President and Vice President.

END