8H Consent 2008 0122 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

CITY OF SAN LEANDRO STAFF REPORT DATE: January 22, 2008 TO: John Jermanis, City Manager FROM: Marian Handa, City Clerk ~;,J SUBJECT PROJECT/PROJECT DESCRIPTION: APPROVED AND FORWARDED TO CITY COUNCII. Jo rmanis Ci anager MATTER OF THE 2008 GENERAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATION The City's General Municipal Election is currently consolidated with the Statewide Primary Election, which is conducted in June of each even-numbered year. Staff researched the feasibility of using Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) as a way for the City to avoid holding a separate runoff election. On January 3, 2008, staff reported to the City Council Rules and Communications Committee that presently, the IRV system has not received certification for use in California. Based on this information, the Committee recommends that the City Council call for the City's General Municipal Election to be held on June 3, 2008, and hold any ensuing runoff election on November 4, 2008. In order to ensure the proper conduct of the General Municipal Election on June 3, 2008, it is recommended that the Council take the following actions: 1) adopt a resolution providing for the holding of a General Municipal Election; 2) adopt a resolution establishing regulations for candidates; and 3) adopt an ordinance setting forth nomination procedures. BACKGROUND The use of Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference, and eliminates the need for a runoff election. City staff has followed the certification process of the Sequoia Voting Systems IRV system to determine whether it would be available for the City to use in 2008. At present, the system is still undergoing federal testing, and there is no assurance that it will be certified in time for use in the November 2008 election.