Hoboken Chooses Favorite Cheese To Learn About Ranked Choice Voting: See Winners

HOBOKEN, NJ — More than 100 people packed the Hoboken library on Monday night to gobble cheese and learn why changing state law to allow "ranked choice voting" could improve local elections.

Last November, voters in Hoboken chose from six mayoral candidates. Since none of them amassed more than 50 percent of the vote, the two top vote-getters competed in a heated runoff on Dec. 2, after Thanksgiving.

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Turnout for the second election was cut in half, said the group Fair Vote.

Activist groups and local officials hosted an event at the library Monday that used favorite cheeses to encourage voters to sign a petition for ranked choice voting, a method that would avoid runoffs.

In essence, ranked choice voting would allow voters to not only pick their favorite candidates, but to rank runners-up.

The person favored most by the voters would win, even if they were sometimes second choice.

This process was used in the New York City mayoral election, officials said.

Among those on hand to explain the process were Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher, former council candidate Liz Urtecho, Assemblywoman Katie Brennan, and Mayor Emily Jabbour. State Sen. Raj Mukherjee said he is supporting legislation to change state law to encourage this type of voting.

Fisher, who co-founded Uniting for Democracy — a sponsor of the event — told the crowd the issue is non-partisan.

"Having fair elections, having transparent voting, benefits everyone," she said.

So which cheeses were the winners?

Cheesy Candidates Win

After votes were cast, gouda was the big winner, perhaps a sign that people are looking for something different.

A "mystery cheese" (garlic basil, according to Fisher) came in second, with Hoboken's mainstay, fresh mozzarella, coming in third. Gruyere (a hard cheese) and cheddar fell behind.

Library Director Jennie Pu said she was pleased with the event.

"Any time you use food to get people engaged in civics, it's a win," she said.

She said that using cheese made a tough topic more "palatable," then winced at her inadvertent joke, calling it "cheesy."

You can learn more about ranked choice voting in New Jersey here. And find out about future library events here.