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Moorhead commission asks staff to research voting alternatives after concern about low‑plurality winners
Summary
After citing a recent low‑plurality mayoral result in Fargo, Moorhead Charter Commission members voted to ask the city attorney and city manager to research alternatives such as approval voting or primary/runoff systems and to report back in approximately two months.
The Moorhead Charter Commission voted to ask city staff to research alternative municipal voting methods after a member raised concerns about winners elected with a small share of the vote.
Mark Voxland, a charter commission member, noted that a recent mayoral race in Fargo produced a winner with "less than 25% of the votes cast" and asked whether the commission should study whether Moorhead should consider different voting mechanisms, including approval voting or a runoff/primary system. City Attorney Katherine McNamera said the commission could investigate the issue and staff could report back.
Commissioners discussed goals for any change: some said the objective should be a "stronger sense of consensus" among elected leaders rather than simply increasing turnout. One commissioner recommended staff survey practices across Minnesota to identify methods that have been tried and whether they achieved the intended goals.
A motion to direct the city attorney and the city manager to research voting options, including approval voting, and return with findings and options carried after a second; the transcript records a voice vote in favor. The motion included an expectation that staff would report back in roughly two months.
The discussion produced no formal proposal to change Moorhead's charter or election rules; commissioners asked staff to gather information and return to the commission for possible future deliberation.
