BOB VON STERNBERG, Star Tribune

November 3, 2009

On a light-turnout, local Election Day, the brave new voting method in Minneapolis appears to be running smoothly.

All day, lines of voters were short, according to reports from polling places.

The ballot itself may be the most interesting aspect of this election across Minnesota, with Minneapolis voters giving a test drive to ranked-choice voting, informally known as instant runoff voting.

"Most of our voters were very well-informed and understood ranked-choice voting," said Richard Hollenzer, an election judge at Bancroft Elementary School in south Minneapolis "Most people knew exactly what they were doing."

Among the first 90 voters at the precinct was Paula Keller, a freelance photographer who said simply, "I didn't have a problem with it."

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