2024 ballot measure would make Colorado’s primaries open, enact ranked-choice voting for general elections
Colorado voters will likely be asked next year to radically overhaul the state’s election system by adopting an “open” primary system and ranked-choice voting in general elections while also doing away with the caucus and assembly process of putting candidates on the ballot. The proposal would also replace vacancy committees with special elections when state lawmakers resign.
The changes would be made through a 2024 ballot measure amending the Colorado Constitution. If approved, the constitutional amendment would take effect in 2026.
Kent Thiry, the wealthy former CEO of the Denver-based dialysis provider DaVita, has funded a number of ballot initiatives in the state in recent years overhauling elections and democratic processes and is behind the proposal. He said it’s a response to sharp partisan divisions in Colorado and across the nation that he sees as a threat to democracy.
“I think this is about bringing voice and choice back to the people,” he told The Colorado Sun. “Whether they’re Democrats, Republicans or independents, they need their voice and choice back.”