On the November ballot, Lane County voters will be asked to decide whether or not to institute a new voting method, called STAR voting, for non-partisan elections.

STAR stands for Score, Then Automatic Runoff. Under the STAR voting method, ballots would list every candidate and allow voters to score them zero to five. The two highest scoring candidates are the finalists for an automatic runoff. Your vote goes to whichever of those two received your higher score.

Measure 20-290 will only appear on the Lane County ballot. One of the petitioners is Eugene businessman Mark Frohnmayer.

Among other benefits, Frohnmayer says the STAR method prevents vote splitting or the “spoiler effect.”

“Any time there are more than 2 candidates in a race today, the vote is inherently unequal,” Frohnmayer says...

Click here to read full article or to listen to the interview.