Schedule

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Panel 1: Bridging the Gap Between Theory and Practice

Join us for an exciting conversation with top voting theorists and dedicated reform advocates as we explore the differences between how they think about voting method science and what they can teach one another.

	Nicolaus Tideman received his PhD in economics from the University of Chicago and has been a professor at Virginia Tech since 1973. His many accomplishments in social choice theory include the invention of the "ranked pairs" method of Condorcet Voting. He wrote the book Collective Decisions and Voting: The Potential for Public Choice.
	Benjamin D. Singer, the CEO of Show Me Integrity, has worked on ethics, campaign finance, redistricting, and electoral reforms with leaders across the political spectrum including Sen. John Danforth, Sen. Rob Schaaf, and Tishaura Jones. His work has been featured in TV, radio, and newspaper outlets across the nation.
	Marcus Ogren (they/them) is a researcher who uses computer simulations to study voting methods. They are particularly interested in how voting methods incentivize candidates and other actors, strategic voting, and assessing voting methods that have yet to see much real-world use. You can follow their work at https://medium.com/@voting-in-the-abstract.
	Sara Wolk is Executive Director and Co-Founder at the Equal Vote Coalition and STAR Voting Action. She has helped bring voting method reform to the real world by creating accessible educational content, speaking on national panels, and co-authoring a peer-reviewed analysis of voting method accuracy and strategy that has been published in the journal Constitutional Political Economy.

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Panel 2: Election Process: Open Primaries, Runoffs, Top 4; What are the options?

Primary elections can come in many forms, or be eliminated altogether. They can be partisan, non-partisan, or open. They can send two or more candidates to a general election. Join our panel in weighing the pros and cons of different options.

	S. Chad Peace is founder and president of IVC Media LLC. He is also a partner at the law firm of Peace & Shea LLP, legal strategist for the Independent Voter Project, and a Founding Board Member of the National Association of Nonpartisan Reformers, where he is a nationally recognized leader in election law and voter rights.
	John Opdycke is the Founder and President of Open Primaries. He is an activist and strategist with 30 years of experience working in independent, alternative, and reform politics. In 2001 he helped elect Mike Bloomberg as the first independent Mayor of New York City.  He has appeared on Fox News, MSNBC, Al Jazeera, Cheddar TV, PBS, and NBC and has written on the subject of independent politics and electoral reform for various publications.
	Dan Meek co-founded the Independent Party of Oregon.  He has been a 20-year leader in the areas of campaign finance reform, transparency, and consumer protection having litigated all three areas before the Oregon Supreme Court and led grassroots and successful legislative advocacy efforts, helping to pass statewide contribution limits in 2006 and charter amendments in Portland and Multnomah County.
	Thanks to Sass’ demonstrated innovation and leadership, they recently spent two years as the Deputy Director for the Equal Vote Coalition and are now working for the Respect Voters Coalition. They’re also a board director for Democracy Without Elections and the Equal Vote Coalition alongside their volunteer contributions to organizations such as the Center for Election Science.

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Panel 3: Is Ranked Choice Voting Better or Worse than the Status Quo?

Most people agree that plurality voting is one of the worst ways to elect representatives. Is ranked choice voting a better option, or do its flaws outweigh its benefits?

	Chase Oliver is the Libertarian candidate for U.S. President in the 2024 election. In 2022 he ran for U.S. Senate against Herschel Walker and incumbent Senator Raphael Warnock. Oliver was widely credited with causing the runoff election between Warnock and Walker. He advocates the adoption of Ranked Choice Voting to avoid future runoffs.
	Phil Izon spearheaded the initiative petition to repeal Ranked Choice Voting in Alaska, which was used there for the first time in 2022. He has written two books critical of RCV and is writing a third. He is currently working on a petition to remove electronic voting machines from Alaska's elections. His background is in finance and marketing.
	Duncan Siror is the Vice President of STAR Voting Action and a board director at the Equal Vote Coalition. He leads the STAR Voting Ohio chapter and educates marginalized and underserved communicates on the importance of electoral reform. Outside of his voting reform activism, Duncan works in IT as a network analyst.
	Andy Jennings received his Mathematics Ph.D. in 2010 with a thesis on voting systems. He co-founded the Center for Election Science and served on its board for seven years. He has worked in Arizona toward legislation promoting alternative voting systems. This spring, he will be teaching a course at Arizona State University on mathematics and voting.

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Panel 4: Election Integrity: How Do We Ensure Security and Transparency?

How do different alternative voting methods impact election security and transparency? How important is precinct-level tallying when making a decision about voting methods?

	Ed Diehl is State Representative for Oregon House District 17. His sits on the House Behavioral Health & Healthcare Committee and Economic Development, Small Business & Trade Committee, among others. Ed was co-CEO of Concept Systems Inc in Albany, Oregon for 19 years, a control systems integration company. Ed holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University.
	Charlie Conrad is a State Representative for Oregon House District 12. He has served as a public employee for the past 24 years and as a volunteer member on various public advisory committees, including the Lane County Planning Commission. He holds a BS in Wildlife Science as well as a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Colorado.
	Annie Kallen is President of the Equal Vote Coalition and a board member on STAR Voting Action. She educates about voting method reform through writing, presentations, and animated videos. Her goal is to help people in underserved regions acquire more of a say in their communities, and to increase the ability for independents and the politically voiceless to have equal participation in local, federal, and world politics.

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Panel 5: Coming Together as a Reform Movement

Voting method reformers have many options: Ranked Choice Voting, Approval Voting, STAR Voting, proportional versions of all of these, and more. While we may not all agree on the best approaches, how do we support each other as a movement?

	Nina Taylor, MA is CEO of the Center for Election Science. She brings two decades of experience in innovative instructional design, scientific research, organizational readiness, and partnership. Before CES, Taylor served as VP of Learning and Education for the American Society for Radiation Oncology. As well, she was Deputy Director for the Division of Education at the American Psychiatric Association.
	Ruben Michael Montejano is President of STAR Voting Action and a board director at the Equal Vote Coalition. He has been an advocate for voting reform since 2018 and helped start up the STAR Voting California Chapter. Moreover, he focuses on conservation for natives plants in his local areas and is currently a student as well as a Behavior Interventionist.
	Caledon Myers is the Founder and Executive Director of ProRep Coalition, a nonprofit with a mission to enable multiparty democracy in California through education and coalition-building for Proportional Representation. He cares deeply about improving our Democracy.
	Jim Lindsay is the co-founder of Cal RCV. He has been active in the movement for RCV and Proportional Representation for more than 30 years. He wrote the software the city of Cambridge uses to count its PRCV elections. He has been involved in almost every campaign to adopt RCV in California. He has been on many city commissions in Albany, and is currently serving as president of the newly established Alameda County Elections Commission.

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Closing Message