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Marco Rubio unveils massive State Dept. overhaul with reductions of staff and bureaus; Visas revoked, status changed for international students in TX; Alaska lawmakers work to improve in-school mental health care; Montana DEQ denies Big Hole River decision, cites law opposed by EPA; Indiana moves to regulate legal THC sales and branding.

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White House defends Secretary Hegseth amid media scrutiny, federal judges block efforts to dismantle U.S. international broadcasters, and major restructuring hits the State Department and rural programs.

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Schools in timber country face an uncertain future without Congress' reauthorization of a rural program, DOGE cuts threaten plant species needed for U.S. food security, and farmers will soon see federal dollars for energy projects unlocked.

Wyoming Dems to Debut Ranked-Choice Voting

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Thursday, March 19, 2020   

LARAMIE, Wyo. -- The Wyoming Democratic Party has canceled in-person caucuses because of the COVID-19 crisis, but voters still can cast ballots by mail and at drop boxes.

And for the first time, voters will be able to rank their choice of candidates.

Chris Merrill, executive director of the nonpartisan Equality State Policy Center, says one benefit of what's called ranked-choice voting could be fewer negative ads, because candidates need to reach beyond their hard-core base to convince voters to make them their second or third choice.

"It would cut down on the kind of attack approach, and it would force candidates to focus more on issues and to be more civil in general," he explains.

Voters can choose up to five candidates in order of their preference, under the new system, and votes for candidates that don't get at least 15% would automatically go to the next one on a voter's list.

All mail ballots must be postmarked by this Friday, and in-person ballot pickup and drop-off locations will be available on March 28 and April 4.

Merrill says ranked-choice voting also should eliminate the need to "hold your nose" when casting a ballot, which happens when voters fear that their vote won't count if they vote for their favorite candidate not doing well in the polls.

Merrill says the new system also should help bring more diverse candidates onto ballots.

"There's good evidence that, in a ranked-choice voting system, women and people of color do better than in the traditional one-vote system, where you don't get to thoroughly express your preferences by ranking," he states.

Wyoming joins Alaska, Hawaii, Kansas and Nevada to use ranked-choice voting in the presidential primary, and according to the news digest WyoFile, the system also has been used to elect city councils and mayors in Colorado, Utah and six other states.

The Wyoming Republican Party has not yet announced its process for choosing its presidential convention delegates.


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