Block Voting vs. Bullet Voting

Block Voting in Arlington Heights

Block voting is a term derived from the legal ability for a registered voter to cast more than one vote on the ballot. For example in the upcoming 2011 local village election a voter may vote for 4 trustees for a total of 4 votes cast. However, the ballot is not spoiled if the voter chooses to cast any number of votes below the total of four.

The trustee election has four open Board positions. The ballot will preface the voter with the instruction, “Vote for Not More than Four”. The ballot is not spoiled if the voter decides to vote for any number less than four votes.

Block voting comes into play when voters use all their available votes on the ballot. The effect of block voting is that a relatively small percentage of voters that consistently vote as a block will decide the outcome of an election.

For example during Arlington Heights village elections, approximately 10,000 people or 20% of all registered voters cast votes. In the case of trustee elections, with four positions open, about 4,000 loyal, administration voters will cast their four votes each to the incumbent (current office holders) trustees, or their endorsed new candidate. The remaining 6,000 voters usually spread their 4 votes around between all candidates, either incumbent or challenger trustees.

The real challenger candidates have a near impossible chance to ever catch up to the block initially received by the incumbent trustee candidates (or their endorsements). As a result these candidates receiving the initial block vote will have a high probability of winning the election.

To Effect Electoral Change Use Bullet Voting

Voters outside the loyal incumbent voting block, (in our example approximately 6,000 voters), must realize that to replace incumbent candidates, the voter must cast their votes to the challenger candidates only. By doing so the challengers are in position to at least even the margin already given to the incumbent candidates.

The current 2011 village trustee election has three incumbents running for office; Mr. Thomas W. Hayes (1991), Mr. John Scaletta (2007), and Ms. Carol J. Blackwood (2010). Mr. Bruce C. Green, (current chairman of the Plan Commission) and Mr. Mike Sidor are the official two challengers.

However, Mr. Green is likely to receive the endorsement of the incumbent block to replace Mr. Tom Stengren, who is retiring after 19 years on the Board. In order to balance the vote totals, voters should consider voting exclusively for Mr. Mike Sidor. That is not cast any of their remaining three votes at all. In this instance Mr. Sidor might be able to make up the difference of block votes cast to the other candidates. This is called Bullet Voting.

The sad fact is that only 20% of registered voters actually vote in the local election. Local politics is by proximity vital to your interests. Please ask friends and neighbors to come to the polls and bullet vote for one candidate.