Why I back Better Elections Amendment

Are you tired of nasty political campaigns that spend substantial time and money slashing at their opponents, leaving you struggling to learn anything at all about what they actually support?

I certainly am. That's why I'm supporting the Better Elections Amendment in Missouri.

If passed by voters statewide, the Better Elections Amendment will give us better choices because candidates will have incentives to tell us what they are FOR, rather than turning us off with vicious attacks. In short, candidates must seek every vote, because they would need an actual majority of votes to win office.

These things are important to me as a citizen who is deeply frustrated by the dysfunction in Jefferson City and Washington, D.C. and looking for solutions. I grew up in Cape Girardeau in a Republican household, graduated from Cape Central High School, then left to attend the U.S. Naval Academy. Upon graduation, I served in the U.S. Navy on active duty for nearly a dozen years as both a Surface Warfare Officer and an attorney in the Navy's Judge Advocate-General Corps, or JAG.

In 2008, my wife and I decided to come home to Southeast Missouri. We settled in Cape Girardeau, and I joined the business my grandfather started. What I learned during those years in the Navy, and living in five different states, is that good people can have different views and still work toward common goals. That's truly the American way. But it's not the way things seem today in our political process. The Better Elections Amendment will help us correct course by giving us better choices, better ballot security and better accountability to us, the people of Missouri, not political parties and special interests.

I'm one who wants to support the best candidates with the best ideas even if that means not following a straight party line. Too often, activists on the extremes of politics have undue influence in party primaries by exploiting low voter turnout and plurality voting. The Better Elections Amendment would empower voters by giving them the freedom to vote in an open primary for the candidates of their choice, regardless of political party. In turn, it would reward those candidates whose ideas and values have appeal to the most voters.

Then, the top four finishers would advance to a November instant runoff general election. You could vote for just your top choice, or you are empowered to rank all four candidates, from one to four, according to your preference. If no candidate secures majority support, the bottom candidate is eliminated and the votes of those who ranked that candidate first would be added to their second choice. When a candidate reaches more than 50% of the vote, they win, with support from an actual majority of voters.

This election process would require candidates to be more mindful about what they say and do -- they need every vote to win -- rather than only appealing to narrow special interests or political extremes. It also gives them the incentive to stick to practical issues that matter to all of us, rather than alienating other candidates' supporters.

I also like the Better Elections Amendment's provisions for better ballot security. Voting machines will have to be checked and verified before any ballots are cast. Election officials will have to keep a paper trail of every ballot to ensure they are properly cast. When ballots are counted or handled, every active candidate or their designee have a right to watch. And when vacancies happen in elected offices, special elections must be called rather than allowing politicians to hand-pick replacements for important positions. These changes are so sensible, they deserve to be in the Constitution.

The system now is rigged to help politicians, parties and special interests, not the everyday needs of the people. No single measure can fix everything that's broken. But the Better Elections Amendment has solid, sensible reforms that I believe Missouri needs to ensure integrity, accountability and fairness in our elections. Read the proposal for yourself at www.BetterElectionsMO.org -- and then, I hope you will join me in supporting the Better Elections Amendment.

It's the positive change we deserve!

Clay Hahs is a Cape Girardeau native, Navy veteran, attorney and wealth management advisor with The Hahs Group-Northwestern Mutual, a third-generation family business.