A public affairs firm retained by one of the main groups behind the left’s push to popularize ranked-choice voting methods is trying to market the scheme to conservatives by painting it as a fix to the “ideological gap” between GOP voters and their representatives, an invitation to a briefing on the issue suggests.
The Institute for Political Innovation (IPI) pushes “final five voting,” a kind of ranked-choice voting “pioneered” by IPI Founder Katherine Gehl that pits the top five candidates from an open primary against each other in a ranked general election. IPI’s other priorities include plans to eliminate party primaries and replace Congress with a dystopian-sounding “modern, model legislature.”
Both of Gehl’s groups, IPI and the Final Five Fund, appear to be headquartered in the same Chicago building as the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL), which used more than $300 million from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to influence election administration during the 2020 election. Many states have since banned private election funding.
“Baron is proud to work with Katherine Gehl and the Institute for Political Innovation on final five voting,” wrote Jonathan Baron, founder of the government and public relations firm that often covers center-right issues, in an email to The Federalist.
“IPI retains our firm as consultants in support of Final Five Voting. It’s a terrific organization and an important initiative,” he said in a follow-up email.
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Baron Public Affairs planned a “private briefing” last
